IT departments are struggling to evolve and adapt to the new hybrid digital workplace, leading to significant loss of productivity for millions of workers, finds new research from Scalable Software.
The survey of 400 US and UK IT decision makers (ITDMs) found that, on average, employees lose nearly four hours a week (3.78) because of digital employee experience (DEX) failings. Despite being aware of the impact poor digital experiences and digital friction have on productivity, IT teams lack the data to identify problems and optimise experiences.
An overwhelming majority (90%) of ITDMs in both the US and UK say their organisation suffers from “productivity paranoia” over hybrid working. Yet, the research finds many businesses still use traditional productivity measures which are not relevant in hybrid digital workplaces – so in reality are unable to accurately assess productivity or identify where blockers occur. For instance, businesses are relying on insufficient metrics such as work output (67%), line manager assessments (56%), time tracking software (51%), and employee self-assessment (48%). The risk of relying on such limited and subjective methods is conflating an output or being present online with being productive.
Mark Creswell, Co-Founder, Scalable Software, commented:
Today, productivity is underpinned by digital efficiency, and digital friction can greatly reduce an employee’s potential to be effective at work. Sadly, this research shows businesses still don’t really appreciate that the metrics being used are only providing a partial picture of an employee’s job performance.
Mark Creswell, Co-Founder, Scalable Software
Previous research from Scalable Software found that 43% of knowledge workers say poor digital employee experience (DEX) has reduced their job satisfaction, while 29% say it has made them want to quit. Moreover, ITDMs and knowledge workers both identify the same top three causes of poor DEX; having to toggle between applications repeatedly to complete a task, applications that repeatedly freeze, crash or load slowly, and too many communication channels to manage resulting in “notification overload”.
However, while there is a common understanding between workers and ITDMs of the major challenges, IT departments are still largely using reactive metrics to analyze DEX, including volume of IT support tickets/requests (67%), service desk performance (60%) and employee self-assessment (48%).
Cresswell continued:
Many IT leaders understand the challenge, but the problem is they aren’t armed with the tools required to identify and tackle the productivity barriers that exist across their environment. However, for organizations that lead the way in adopting DEX analytics, the benefits are significant. By optimizing experiences and eliminating friction in digital workplaces, businesses not only get a happier, more productive workforce but also a much healthier bottom line.
To successfully analyse productivity through improved DEX, organizations need to deploy platforms that can collate and distil data from every endpoint so that IT departments can accurately measure and analyse all workflows across the enterprise, regardless of whether staff work from home or in the office. These capabilities enable IT departments to proactively deliver exceptional digital experiences that help keep all employees productive and engaged.
To download the full report, The evolution of the IT department: From break/fix to the backbone of the modern enterprise, please visit: https://www.scalable.com/2024-digital-employee-experience-new-research
Joanne is the editor for Workplace Wellbeing Professional and has a keen interest in promoting the safety and wellbeing of the global workforce. After earning a bachelor's degree in English literature and media studies, she taught English in China and Vietnam for two years. Before joining Work Well Pro, Joanne worked as a marketing coordinator for luxury property, where her responsibilities included blog writing, photography, and video creation.
