At a Glance

• Workforce: 125 Users (80% Hybrid, 20% Remote)
• Challenge: Previous monitoring tools provided insufficient data, leading to inconclusive HR investigations and management skepticism regarding remote work .
• Solution: Teramind for real-time video playback, historical forensics, and productivity analysis.
• Key Result: Validated the hybrid work model, “saved jobs” by exonerating falsely accused employees, and mitigated legal liability regarding hourly wage claims.

The Challenge: The “10-Minute” Blind Spot

As a mid-sized organization navigating the complexities of a hybrid workforce, the company faced a significant visibility gap. Their previous monitoring solution relied on static screen snapshots taken every 10 minutes.

This intermittent approach created a “context vacuum” for the HR and Operations teams. If an incident occurred during the nine-minute gap between snapshots, the company was left guessing. This lack of data had two negative side effects:

1. Management Skepticism: Upper management was skeptical of remote work, fearing that employees working from home were less productive than their in-office counterparts.
2. Inconclusive Investigations: When harassment claims or productivity disputes arose, HR was forced to rely on “he-said, she-said” testimony without definitive proof.

The organization needed a solution that offered continuous visibility rather than static moments in time.

The Solution: Video-Based Forensics

The organization deployed Teramind to ~125 users. While they utilized standard features like chat monitoring (Microsoft Teams) and website tracking, the primary driver for their success was Session Recording & Playback.

Moving from snapshots to video enabled the team to observe the day-to-day workflows of their employees. As the client noted, “You go in with one set of facts and then you go look at the video, and it’s like, ‘Oh no, this is completely different from what we were told.'”

Key Use Cases & Wins

1. Saving Jobs by contextualizing “Idleness”

One of the most surprising outcomes of implementing Teramind was that it became a tool for employee advocacy rather than just discipline. Managers would occasionally flag remote employees for low productivity based on output gaps.

Using Teramind, the HR team could investigate the root cause of the inactivity. In several instances, they discovered:

• Unreported Tech Issues: Employees appeared idle but were actually struggling with computer malfunctions they hadn’t reported.
• Off-Screen Training: Employees were watching training videos on secondary monitors. Because the interaction wasn’t happening on the primary screen, previous tools flagged them as “unproductive,” but Teramind’s video review proved they were working.

“There’s been times where a lot of people… we thought weren’t working, but we were able to prove that they were… It helps save a lot of jobs.”

2. Validating the Hybrid Model

To address upper management’s concerns about remote work efficiency, the team used Teramind to conduct a comparative analysis of productivity data.

The data revealed that productivity remained level regardless of whether employees were in the office or working from home . This objective data point allowed the HR team to justify and cement the 80/20 hybrid schedule, proving that location did not dictate performance .

3. Advanced Investigations: From “Mouse Jigglers” to Side Hustles

The depth of Teramind’s monitoring capabilities allowed the company to catch specific policy violations that standard tools missed:

• The “Side Hustle”: In one unique case, the company identified an employee who was using company time to translate animation scripts from China into Korean.
• Mouse Jigglers: The system successfully identified remote workers using “mouse jigglers” to simulate activity. However, the video context allowed HR to distinguish between “innocent” jiggling (during a lunch break) vs. deceptive jiggling (during active work hours).
• Wage Theft Prevention: The system flagged hourly employees who were working “off the clock” (unpaid overtime). This allowed the company to intervene immediately, preventing potential lawsuits regarding labor law non-compliance.

4. Streamlining Harassment Inquiries

Previously, investigating inappropriate chat messages required submitting tickets to IT to pull logs, a process that took time. With Teramind, HR can pull up the recording in real time to see the chat bubble, the conversation context, and the user’s reaction, resolving disputes almost instantly.

Implementation Strategy & Advice

The client offered specific advice for other organizations of their size looking to deploy Teramind, emphasizing that “architecture” comes first.

• Define the Architecture: The client advises knowing exactly how you want the system set up before deployment. Deciding on the hierarchy of groups and monitoring profiles early saves significant time later.
• Nuanced Reporting: They warned against relying on raw numbers without context. A user with “50% productivity” isn’t necessarily slacking; they might be in a meeting or on a call. The data provides a baseline, but human context is required for the conclusion.
• Respectful Configuration: The client customized the tool to balance security with privacy. For example, they intentionally disabled “keystroke logging” features, feeling it was too invasive for their specific culture, proving the tool can be tailored to different privacy comfort levels.

The Verdict

By moving from snapshots to continuous video recording, the client transformed their HR investigations from guessing games into evidence-based reviews.

“Without it, there are a lot of investigations that would have gone very differently… having that proof helps a lot.”