ABOUT THE REPORT. Send any inquiries to Workfront at: THE STATE OF ENTERPRISE WORK // 2015

Transcription

1 PRESENTED BY WORKFRONT AND CONDUCTED BY HARRIS POLL 2015

2 ABOUT THE REPORT The survey was conducted online from July 6-24, 2015 among 617 U.S. adults aged 18 years and older, employed full-time or part-time, who work at a company with 500 or more employees and who work on a computer and collaborate with other people. Survey participants are referred to as office workers. 2 Send any inquiries to Workfront at: info@workfront.com

3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In your hands you hold the 2015 State of Enterprise Work Report, an annual study on how work is managed and what employees are concerned with in enterprises, which this study defines as companies with 500 employees or more. As enterprises grow, so do the demands on their employees in terms of productivity and communication. Too often, this pushes existing tools, processes, and schedules to the breaking point. Gaining a vantage point into what is actually happening on enterprise teams becomes nearly impossible. Without this visibility, conflict and misperceptions flourish, team workloads become unbalanced, and employees work increasingly longer hours. In this report, you ll find that office workers consider themselves productive, but they also work regularly beyond standard business hours. You ll also find snapshots of their perceptions of each other and the things that keep them from being more productive. For example: 82% of office workers log into work outside of standard business hours during a typical work week; more than half log in every day (52%). 81% rate themselves highest in productivity compared to their co-workers (55%), managers (53%), leaders (47%), and direct reports (43%). Millennials are rated as most creative and tech-savvy, yet least cooperative/team players, least likely to take responsibility, and as the biggest complainers. We hope this report proves helpful for enterprise leaders looking to build more productive, effective teams. 3

4 PRODUCTIVITY AT WORK the STATE OF ENTERPRISE WORK //

5 PRODUCTIVITY IS RELATIVE Survey questions on productivity expose some interesting perceptions of who is productive in the workplace and who is not, and which tools and practices are regarded as helping productivity. Most interesting, however, is how respondents feel about their own productivity compared to that of their colleagues. QUESTION: How would you rate the following groups overall with regard to their productivity? 81% RATE THEMSELVES HIGHEST (RATED AN 8, 9, OR 10) IN PRODUCTIVITY COMPARED TO THEIR CO-WORKERS, MANAGERS, LEADERS, AND DIRECT REPORTS 40% 30% 20% 10% 1 Least Productive Company leadership [population: office workers base size: 617] My direct reports My coworkers My managers 10 Most Productive Myself Not applicable responses are not shown the STATE OF ENTERPRISE WORK //

6 QUESTION: Which one of the following would do the most to improve your work productivity? Uninterrupted blocks of work time 18% More efficient work processes More accountability from stakeholders/decision makers 13% More advanced technology 11% More/better qualified people and resources 23% Other 6% None of these 10% 18% D [population: office workers; base size: 617] the STATE OF ENTERPRISE WORK //

7 QUESTION: What is the impact of each of the following on your productivity? 4% 1% 7% 45% % Ability to access work information from anywhere 14% 1% 4% 34% % Mobile devices 22% 4% 11% 36% % Project management software 37% 3% 11% 29% 20% Working with employees in multiple time zones 44% 6% 20% % 12% [population: office workers; base size: 617] Not applicable Much less productive Somewhat less productive Somewhat more productive Much more productive ABOUT 8 IN 10 OFFICE WORKERS WHO USE PROJECT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE (79%) SAY IT HELPS THEM BE MORE PRODUCTIVE 7

8 WORK HOURS 8

9 NON-STANDARD HOURS BECOME THE STANDARD Whether to catch up on the work they couldn t get to during their normal nine-to-five or to score political points, the vast majority of office workers are making logging in outside of standard business hours their standard. In this struggle for more hours, the lunch hour is no longer an hour for most, and office workers are not above delaying a restroom break for the sake of productivity. QUESTION: During a typical work week, how often do you log into work/work before or after standard business hours? This can be from the office, home, or another location. 4 days a week 10% 3 days a week 4% Every day 52% 2 days a week 7% 1 day a week 9% [population: office workers; base size: 617] Never 18% D 82% OF OFFICE WORKERS LOG INTO WORK OUTSIDE OF NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS DURING A TYPICAL WORK WEEK; MORE THAN HALF (52%) LOG IN EVERY DAY 9

10 QUESTION: How often do you log into work/work on the weekend? This can be from the office, home, or another location. NEARLY THREE- FOURTHS (72%) LOG INTO WORK/ WORK ON THE WEEKEND 2-3 weekends a month 14% D 1 weekend a month 10% Less than one weekend a month 9% Every weekend 39% Never 28% [population: office workers; base size: 617] 10

11 QUESTION: What are the reasons why you work outside standard business hours? Select all that apply. Try to get ahead of my work 52% Too much work to do 39% It is expected To be available for clients any time of the day or night I work with global employees/ employees in other time zones Inefficient use of time during the work day To look more dedicated than my colleagues Fake overtime/make it look like I am working overtime at my company % 22% 25% 5% 9% 13% OFFICE WORKERS WORK OUTSIDE NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS MOSTLY TO GET AHEAD OF THEIR WORK (52%) OR BECAUSE THEY HAVE TOO MUCH WORK TO DO (39%) Other 13% 17% None of these 12% [population: office workers who work outside of standard business hours; base size: 522] 11

12 *0 7% * *05 QUESTION: Overall, how many hours do you work in a typical week? 31% 19% 11% 6% 6% 7% 5% 5% 1% 1% 1% 2% 1% % 1% [population: office workers; base size: 617] * [ equals less than 1%] FOR FULL-TIME WORKERS, THE MEAN HOURS WORKED PER WEEK IS 44.3 HOURS 12

13 QUESTION: How much time do you typically take for lunch? 45 minutes 30 Minutes 33% One Hour 26% 15 minutes 11% More than an hour 7% I don t take a lunch break 13% 10% D [population: office workers; base size: 617] 13

14 QUESTION: How many times in the last week have you delayed going to the restroom to meet a deadline? 17% 21212% 39% MORE THAN HALF (52%) DELAY GOING TO THE BATHROOM TO MEET A DEADLINE; AMONG THOSE, THEY DO SO AN AVERAGE OF 5X PER WEEK 44% 3%3 1%121+ * [population: office workers; base size: 617] [* equals less than 1%] % 7% 48%

15 DISTRACTIONS AT WORK 15

16 NEW YEAR, SAME BARRIERS For the second year in a row, meetings and remain a thorn in the side of office workers, who just cannot seem to find enough time for the duties for which they were hired. As was seen last year, the lack of structure and interruptions of all kinds are still major barriers for office workers. QUESTION: Which of the following, if any, ever get in the way of your work? Please select all that apply Wasteful meetings (e.g., not needed, not engaging, inefficient) Exessive s (e.g., sending, responding, sorting) Unexpected phone calls Excessive oversight (e.g., needing too many approvals or reviews.) Lack of standard processes for workflow Poor prioritization methods at my company Lack of collaboration within my team Client hand-holding Poor alignment between my team and overall corporate goals Excessive delegation from my boss or manager Something else Nothing [Item not included in 2014 study] 13% 11% 6% 24% 25% 22% 19% 20% 24% [population: 2014 and 2015 office workers; base sizes 2014 = 175, 2015 = 617] 37% 32% 35% 34% 33% 34% 30% 32% 30% 32% 40% 45% 57% 58% WASTEFUL MEETINGS NAMED AS TOP WORK OBSTACLE FOR SECOND YEAR IN A ROW

17 QUESTION: Please give a best guess estimate for what percentage of your work week is taken up by each of the following. Sending, responding to, and sorting 12% Administrative tasks 10% Performing the primary duties of my job 46% WITH EVERYTHING ELSE THEY HAVE TO DO, OFFICE WORKERS CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE TO CARVE OUT TIME FOR THEIR PRIMARY JOB DUTIES D Everything Else 7% Wasteful meetings 8% Sending, responding to, and sorting 14% Administrative tasks 12% Useful and/or productive meetings 9% Interruptions for non-essential tasks 8% [Base: Office workers at companies with 500+ employees] Performing the primary duties of your job 45% D Everything Else 6% Wasteful meetings 7% Useful and/or productive meetings 9% Interruptions for non-essential tasks 8% [population: 2014 and 2015 office workers; base sizes 2014 = 175, 2015 = 617] 17

18 COMMUNICATIONS AT WORK 18

19 OLD HABITS ARE HARD TO BREAK Interestingly, although office workers cite excessive s and wasteful meetings as the two biggest obstacles to their work, both and meetings are rated highest in terms of communication effectiveness. Also, adoption of instant messaging is yet to catch up with that of , meetings, and shared files. QUESTION: Overall, how effective or ineffective do you think each of these types of communication is at your company? D 45% 2% 5% 9% 38% D 49% 3% Face-to-face Meetings 7% 6% 35% D 38% [population: office workers; base size: 617] Very effective 8% 5% Shared Documents/ Spreadsheets 37% Somewhat effective 12% Somewhat Ineffective D 27% 30% 22% Instant Messaging Not applicable responses are not shown Very Ineffective Not applicable DESPITE BEING LISTED AS SOMEWHAT OR VERY EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION, EXCESSIVE S ARE ALSO RATED AS THE SECOND MOST COMMON BARRIER TO GETTING WORK DONE 9% 11% 19

20 CONFLICT AT WORK 20

21 CONFLICT ON THE RISE? As the percentage of office workers reporting that they have experienced conflict with other groups rose, this year also saw lack of communication/miscommunication rise to the top of the list of the most common sources of that conflict. Similarly to last year, personality/cultural differences remains small in comparison. QUESTION: Which of the following is the most common source of conflict with other departments/groups/teams? D 80% experienced conflict in D 90% experienced conflict in % Lack of communication/ miscommunication Conflicting priorities Lack of understanding about urgency/ time sensitive nature 1320of task Fighting over 63resources Personality/ Culture differences Other Don t experience conflict with any department/group/team 8Incompetency 6% 3% 20% % 20% 8% % 3% 242%4% 10% 20% 23% 30% [Item not included in 2014 study] 32% [population: 2014 and 2015 office workers; base sizes 2014 = 175, 2015 = 617] THE PERCENTAGE OF OFFICE WORKERS WHO EXPERIENCE CONFLICT WITH ANY OTHER GROUP HAS INCREASED FROM 80% IN 2014 TO 90% IN

22 % D QUESTION: What is the most common consequence of conflict between your department/ group/team and others, meaning the one you most frequently encounter? Low morale/high turnover Missed deadlines 14% Lost productivity 36% Lost confidence in other teams 13% Other 5% [population: office workers; base size: 617] Don t experience conflict with my department/group/team 10% MORE THAN 1 IN 3 (36%) SAY THE BIGGEST CONSEQUENCE OF CONFLICT IS LOST PRODUCTIVITY 22

23 APPRECIATION AT WORK 23

24 BOSSES IMPROVE LISTENING SKILLS Office workers continue to report that, despite the challenges they face, many of the major factors behind work satisfaction are still in order. Nearly all employees, for instance, feel productive at their jobs and have some kind of support system at work. Most interesting was the change in the percentage who reported that their boss listens to them. QUESTION: How strongly do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements? I feel productive at my job % 93% At least one person at work my back has 85% 91% My boss listens to me % 87% I feel I deserve higher compensation for my 83contribution to my company [Item not included in 2014 study] 83% 83% My work is visible throughout organization8074my 74% 80% I feel empowered at work % 78% [population: 2014 and 2015 office workers; base sizes 2014 = 175, 2015 = 617] BETWEEN 2014 AND 2015, THE PROPORTION OF OFFICE WORKERS WHO SAY THEIR BOSS LISTENS TO THEM INCREASED 12 PERCENTAGE POINTS

25 GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES AT WORK 25

26 THE GREATEST GENERATION? How do Millennials, Generation X, and Baby Boomers stack up in the workplace? While it seems each generation has its own strengths and weaknesses, one generation seems better off than the others. QUESTION: Thinking about the employees at your company, which generation of workers does each characteristic most describe? How Each Generation Describes Millennials Hardest workers Most productive Strongest work ethic Most skilled Most creative Best troubleshooters/ problem solvers Most friendly/helpful 16% 1641% 6% 8% % 2355% 16% 6% 1% 12% 6% 17% 1741% 10% 5% 48% 4883% 39% 32% 5% 22% 15% 37% 21% 2144% 18% 6% 55% EACH GENERATION TENDS TO RATE THEMSELVES MORE POSITIVELY THAN DO OTHER GENERATIONS MILLENNIALS RATED HIGHEST IN CREATIVITY AND TECH-SAVVINESS 26 Most tech-saavy Least cooperative/ teamplayer Least likely to take responsibility Bigest complainers Biggest roadblocks 72% 7290% 64% 67% % 29% 4747% As rated by: % 55% 5549% % 15% 3639% % 54% 61% 59% 56% 72% 76% Total Millennials/Gen Y Gen X Baby Boomers [population: office workers; Millennials = 203, Generation X = 207, Baby Boomers = 201]

27 GEN XERS ARE THE MOST REVERED WORKERS: THEY GET THE HIGHEST RATINGS FOR HARD WORK, PRODUCTIVITY, SKILL, TROUBLESHOOTING/ PROBLEM-SOLVING, AND FRIENDLINESS/HELPFULNESS How Each Generation Describes Generation X Hardest workers % 28% 47% 71% Most productive % 33% 40% 74% Strongest work ethic % 9% 49% 54% Most skilled % 35% 44% 68% Most creative % 15% 49% 48% Best troubleshooters/ problem solvers % 29% 40% 68% Most friendly/helpful % 33% 43% 60% Most tech-saavy % 8% 23% 32% Least cooperative/ teamplayer Least likely to take responsibility Bigest complainers Biggest roadblocks % 18% 25% 25% 12 As rated by: % 14% 18% 12% Total Millennials/Gen Y % 17% 21% 27% Gen X Baby Boomers % 16% 31% 26% [population: office workers; Millennials = 203, Generation X = 207, Baby Boomers = 201] 27

28 BABY BOOMERS ARE RATED HIGHEST FOR STRONGEST WORK ETHIC BUT ALSO BEING THE BIGGEST ROADBLOCKS How Each Generation Describes Baby Boomers % Hardest workers 50% Strongest work ethic 2% 2015 // 1% 40% 15% 90% 22% 60% 13% 13% 33% Most friendly/helpful THE STATE OF ENTERPRISE WORK 61% 31% 5% Best troubleshooters/ problem solvers 66% 14% 33% Most skilled Most tech-saavy 22% 26% 5% 10% Most productive Most creative 12% 20% 17% 12% 65% 22% 61% 5% 4% 9% Least cooperative/ teamplayer 31% Least likely to take responsibility 17% 35% 14% 47% As rated by: Total 28% 14% 13% Millennials/Gen Y Bigest complainers 24% Gen X 24% 25% 23% Baby Boomers Biggest roadblocks 40% 23% 45% 54% 28 [population: office workers; Millennials = 203, Generation X = 207, Baby Boomers = 201]

29 Meet Workfront Workfront is a cloud-based Enterprise Work Management solution that helps IT departments, marketing service groups, and other enterprise teams conquer the problems associated with traditional project management. It provides a single system of truth that eliminates work chaos, provides global visibility, and increases productivity. Workfront offers a complete adoptable solution powerful enough for technical users, intuitive enough for business stakeholders, and flexible enough to support Agile, Waterfall, or a mix of the two. It works in the same ways you do. To learn more about Workfront Enterprise Work Management for IT, Marketing, and other teams, and how it can increase enterprise productivity, please contact us at the following: workfront.com (0) // 2015 Over the last 5 decades, Harris Polls have become media staples. With comprehensive experience and precise technique in public opinion polling, along with a proven track record of uncovering consumers motivations and behaviors, The Harris Poll has gained strong brand recognition around the world. The Harris Poll offers a diverse portfolio of proprietary client solutions to transform relevant insights into actionable foresight for a wide range of industries including health care, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer packaged goods. Contact us for more information. harrispollonline.com THE STATE OF ENTERPRISE WORK ABOUT THE HARRIS POLL

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