App Lets You Rate Your Coworkers

iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — A new app is poised to cause some commotion in the office by letting coworkers rate each others’ quirks, personality and work ethic.

Knozen, which officially launched Tuesday, presents users with photos of two colleagues and a question like, “Who is more likely to leave work early for a date?” or “Who is more likely to sing a song out loud?” It works like a modern version of Hot or Not — showing users their own scores and what colleagues have said about them.

“It’s used to better understand how you fit in with other people at work,” founder Marc Cenedella told ABC News.

Users enter their name and work email to sign up, and Knozen verifies employees by sending a confirmation to their company email account. People can only start rating once at least seven people from the company have registered, and people can only rate coworkers if they have signed up themselves.

From there, they can view their own ratings, their colleagues’ ratings, and even browse ratings of people at other companies.

Psychologist John Weaver, who specializes in workplace issues, says he can see both positive and negative effects of the app.

“It sounds like it could be kind of a fun thing, a way to get to know people a little bit more,” Weaver told ABC News. “Certainly, building relationships in the workplace is a way to encourage the work environment. People get along, they work better, they’re more likely to support each other.”

But Weaver can also see the app causing trouble.

“Particularly, if you’ve got someone who is very emotionally sensitive or a target of some kind of bullying,” he said. “Those kinds of interactions, I can imagine, could be used in a negative way to target that person and make that person uncomfortable.”

“I don’t think it poses any more risk than Facebook does,” he added.

But attorney Brad Shear, who specializes in digital issues, warned against using Knozen.

“Any information you put up there, they can use almost however they want,” Shear told ABC News. “Just like with most digital platforms, be careful what you post.”

It’s also possible ratings could be used as evidence in a lawsuit, Shear said.

It may sound like a HR department’s nightmare, but the app’s creator said Knozen isn’t designed to be negative.

“We’re a positive, productive place,” Cenedella said. “It’s all tap, not text — you can’t write anything bad in there. We write all the questions.”

The free app is available in the iTunes app store and is set to launch for Android later this year.

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