Cognizant says its employee laptop tracking tool isn’t for performance evaluation

The global IT services giant, Cognizant, has triggered a significant discussion regarding workplace surveillance following the measured deployment of a new workforce management tool, ProHance, across specific project mandates. The technology, which provides comprehensive tracking of employee activity on company-issued laptops, has been introduced to executives for training, initiating an important conversation about data collection and privacy in the corporate environment.

The ProHance system is built to offer granular insight into the operational day. According to reports detailing the initiative, the programme actively monitors keyboard and mouse movements, meticulously recording the precise applications and web domains an employee uses during official business hours. The application employs strict metrics: staff are classified as ‘idle’ after merely five minutes of device inactivity, advancing to ‘away from system’ should their laptop remain dormant for more than fifteen minutes. 

It also offers minute-by-minute visibility into login times, active software usage, and task duration, mapping individual work patterns to identify workflow bottlenecks and optimisation opportunities.

Cognizant’s take 

However, the firm has moved swiftly and pre-emptively addressed any perception of staff performance tracking or punitive measures. In an official communication, a Cognizant spokesperson issued a strong denial, asserting that the programme is not designed to track, monitor, or evaluate the individual contributions of its personnel. The company stressed that the utilisation of "productivity measurement tools" is a "common industry practice" within the sector, often driven by client demand for accountability and efficiency metrics.

The spokesperson clarified that ProHance is deployed exclusively within "select Business Process Management or Intuitive Operations & Automation projects," primarily at the explicit request of customers and it is being used to "help better understand the client process steps and related time metrics to assess process design inefficiencies". 

Furthermore, the firm stipulated that these tools are only activated after receiving the consent of employees and that the gathered metrics will not be factored into performance appraisals, a safeguard the company insists is firmly in place.