March Madness Not A Major Source Of Distraction

If you work for Tom Hogan, don't let him catch you checking your brackets.

There are clients to serve. There is research to be done. College basketball doesn't just take a back seat. It's not even hitching a ride. Not in his office.

"I could take it or leave it," said the senior partner of the Hogan Law Firm in Brooksville of the NCAA tournament. "No one here watches it. If they do, I'd better not know about it."

Each year, there are stories written about the loss of productivity at the workplace during March Madness. The circumstances seemed to have changed this season.

The recession - in addition to bosses like Hogan - is keeping more people in line.

Office pools, bracket comparisons in the break room and constant Internet watching are not expected to be as rampant this year.

"In this economy, employees are disinclined to do anything that might put their jobs at higher risk than they already are," stated John A. Challenger, of Challenger, Gray and Christmas, in a piece published Friday in U.S. News and World Report.

Challenger's consulting firm famously published a study a few years ago that estimated a $1.7 billion decline in economic productivity during March Madness. No study was done this year because such a "light-hearted" survey seemed inappropriate during the current economic crisis, he said.

"Now that we are in the worst of times," Challenger wrote, "there is no need to generate additional sources of anxiety and stress."

There are other theories about March Madness in the workplace. The country is technology-driven to the point that scoreboard updates can be accessed quickly on a person's desktop or BlackBerry. Someone could be at work, check their tournament brackets and not miss a beat.

Others think March Madness might actually boost camaraderie in the workplace. People have more to talk about while huddled around the water cooler.

"I haven't heard anyone around here complain about it," said Valarie Pianta, of the Hernando County Office of Business Development. "Most people aren't that concerned ... and a lot of employers have many of those Web sites blocked."

Pianta said she and the three others who work in her office compared bracket entries during breakfast Friday morning.

There also is the chance employers are considering the harsh economic climate and are cutting their workers some slack.

"A little distraction could be just what the doctor ordered," Challenger wrote. "The key for companies is finding a way to maximize the positive aspects of March Madness to outweigh any perceived negatives."

The tournament began Thursday and the second round will end Sunday. The regional semifinal round - known as the Sweet Sixteen - will take place Thursday and Friday of next week.

"March Madness gives us a little more to talk about when we're having lunch in the cafeteria," said Robin Schneider, a spokeswoman at Brooksville Regional Hospital. "Other than that, we don't see how it affects our productivity."