Poor technology leads to resignations

Productivity has been a hot topic in recent years. When the world of office work was disrupted, many were concerned about the productivity of remote workers.

It turned out that workers were even more productive on average when working from home. Despite this, companies should be concerned about time management and output.

Lakeside Software, a digital experience platform, has released a Digital Workplace Productivity Report that highlights the need to give employees the technology to manage their workload.

To understand the challenges facing a successful workplace, Lakeside spoke to 600 respondents that consisted of 200 employees, 200 C-level executives, and 200 IT executives across a variety of industries.

Tech and employee frustration

The report found that employees are working at 60% of their potential because of tools and infrastructure. This means organizations are losing money.

Discussing the loss of profit, David Keil, CEO at Lakeside Software, commented: “The loss of nearly one hour per week per employee to IT downtime represents a major productivity issue for enterprise organizations.

“By taking steps to proactively prevent problems occurring across their IT infrastructure, business leaders can minimize downtime and achieve millions of dollars in reclaimed revenue every year.”

Also, employees want to be more productive with 52% wanting management to focus on digital experience. There is a perception gap here, as only 20% of leaders see the need for significant improvement in experience.

The perception gap becomes a greater concern in light of what poor technology experience does to retention rates.

36% of respondents have considered leaving their role because of a poor technology experience, and 14% actually did change their workplace. On top of the loss of money from poorer productivity, hiring new staff and high turnover rates can damage the finances of even the largest enterprises.

Focusing on this statistic, Jason Coari, VP of product at Lakeside Software, tells UNLEASH: “Accelerated by the pandemic, over the past couple years the modern professional workforce has almost completely transformed into a digital workforce. 

“And with technology playing such a critical role in the daily life of employees, it has become inextricably linked to job satisfaction, productivity, and overall engagement. 

“But when employees are unhappy with this digital experience, often feeling it creates barriers outside their control, more than ever they are considering leaving their current employer.”

Coari adds: “The latest research from a third-party report commissioned by Lakeside in April this year states that more than 1/3 of employees have considered leaving their current employer because of poor experience they have with the technology or IT services provisioned by their organization.”

Improving experience and satisfaction

In the remote world of work, poor technology leads to a poor experience. If messages aren’t sent and communications break down, employees can feel isolated.

Understanding your technology, and where it can be improved, is essential in developing a better workplace. Particularly, as the post-pandemic working world experiments with ideas to improve the workplace.

Whether companies want to introduce more flexible working arrangements or even a four-day week, technology needs to empower these moves and most importantly the employees who work in these new setups.

David Wilkins, chief marketing officer at Lakeside Software, commented on the importance of technology in the future of work: “As the four-day work week makes headlines around the globe, organizations are still grappling with how to manage and adapt to decentralized work environments, let alone a reduced work week.

“Our research shows just how important flexibility and the digital experience is to employee satisfaction.

“While many business leaders see workforce engagement as being the main output driver, employees have another perspective: the need for technology, IT support, workplace flexibility, and training that enables greater productivity and leads to a more satisfied workforce.”

Understanding the needs of employees is the first step to improving retention, productivity, and satisfaction.

Of course, once you understand the issues that staff face, it’s up to you to fix them.