Hybrid RFID-GPS Real-Time Location System for Human Resources: Development, Impacts and Perspectives

Radio frequency identification (RFID), including real-time location systems (RTLS,) and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) are technologies that have evolved considerably in the past few years. These technologies have the potential to provide a means by which organizations can follow employees in real time. However, this permanent surveillance might have unpredictable impacts on the employee and on the organization itself. We followed the systems development research process to build a hybrid RFID-GPS system, allowing for the real-time location of human resources both indoors and outdoors. We tested this system in the security service of a Canadian university and we explored the impacts on the workgroup and its employees. Our results showed that this kind of system can work in a genuine context, and that it has distinct impacts on the individual and on the organization which are usually not observed with more traditional information systems.