Workplace Productivity

The speed and scale at which data is sent and received means workers are literally drowning in data that needs processing.  Even discarding irrelevant information, such as reply all emails requires time and decision making. 

A 2012 McKinsey Global Institute report, The Workplace Evolution¹ found an opportunity lies in better utilising the technology organizations already possess. 

The report identified, the average interaction worker spends around 28% of their workweek managing email and almost 20% looking for information internally or interacting with colleagues to get assistance with specific tasks.

Clearly, the answer to workplace productivity DOESN’T lie in adding more. In fact, in many cases we already have all we need, it is just that organizations are not putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Organizations tend to rely on technology to “solve” a problem, often because that’s what the business case said it would do.

McKinsey’s report suggests one of the keys is, reducing the time it takes staff to find what they need to enable them to focus on delivering results. Whilst a logical recommendation, this approach relies on workers taking initiative rather than an organization taking responsibility to guide their people into new approaches, that develop into new habits, that become the norm.

Just like going to the gym once does make you fit.  The opportunity to leverage what we already have requires organizations to truly commit to creating a new mindset and approach to how we store, shift and share information, not just looking at the bottom line of a business case.

¹ https://hbr.org/sponsored/2018/05/the-workplace-evolution

Donna Hanson is a productivity and technology specialist who works with organizations and their teams to leverage everyday technology to increase productivity, engagement and retention.  To find out how Donna helps organizations get productive, visit www.donnahanson.com