The Final 4 (Billion Dollars in Lost Productivity)

March Madness is upon us, and many of our fellow friends and colleagues are participating in the "madness" at varying levels.  Some fill out office pools, others sneak out to watch the games, and some stream the action live on their computers or phones.  All told, this workplace diversion is costing employers approximately four billion dollars annually, according to a study discussed at Forbes.com.  According to the study, the unprecedented access to games provided to workers under current technology has lead to increased losses for employers.  It is interesting to see efforts to quantify the workplace costs of the NCAA tournament, but are there any benefits as well?  I can think of a few, but feel free to hypothesize in the comments below or to discuss the impact of March Madness in the workplace, as we wait for the Sweet Sixteen games to begin in a few days...

-- Joe Seiner