Do We Have Too Many Apps at Work?
We face an app overload. When apps arrived on the scene, they were helpful devices that connected us and streamlined our workdays. Today, however, an overabundance of applications has all levels of organizations overwhelmed and saw their productivity pay the price.
A study by RingCentral revealed that an overwhelming amount of workers polled felt the amount of communication made getting work done a challenge (70%). Additionally, two-thirds of workers admitted to wasting up to an hour a day at work going between apps. Furthermore, 68% admitted to toggling between apps ten times or more per hour!
The frustration is leading workers to rather perform household tasks than work. In some cases, this forced overabundance of apps is what drove a professional to go freelance. In this capacity, a worker can choose the number of apps they work into their everyday work life.
The study went on to show that workers most used email (74%), office programs (56%) and file sharing (33%) as the top three apps. Voice communications (31%) and social media (30%) weren’t far behind. Meanwhile, apps including online doc collaboration, video conferencing, team chats, human resources and CRM rounded out the list with the lowest percentage still used by 13%.
This app overload leads to disrupting workflows as you have to search across numerous apps to get information — this led to 31% polled to lose their train of thought in the process. Team messaging and communication received much of the blame with unscheduled meetings (42%), phone calls (33%) and emails (25%) topping the list with searching for information in apps, in-person co-worker communication, social media following close behind.
In all, our diversification of apps and services has led to unnecessary siloing of information. In addition to the storing of information, too many appear to be communicating for the sake of communicating rather than achieving goals.
The Fallout From Workplace App Overload
As noted, the fallout of workplace app overload leads to many not using their time correctly and losing track of information. This lack of time doesn’t only directly impact the time lost. It bleeds into recovery time as well. Each time the workflow is disrupted, it takes that employee time to recover and get back into the flow of work. If communication is going nonstop, it becomes understandable how a day’s productivity can be lost.
The study went on to note that the effects are felt around the world. It indicates a global uptick in worker frustration over the implementation of too many apps at work. What was aimed to enhance productivity is becoming the single most significant detriment. When comparing navigating work apps to everyday chores, those polled likened the task to household chores, spam emails and trying to lose weight. Essentially, nearly or more than half the workers surveyed place app overload frustration on the same level as an adult’s most despised yet necessary pain points.
Now, instead of revising the system, a majority of workers are resigned to keeping their heads above water. They’ll do their best to respond to every email, take every meeting and respond to every message they are tagged in Slack. However, that does not mean the employee is happy or comfortable. They are doing their best to maintain order at the expense of their creative and quality assurance process. That expense impacts any person whose job requires problem-solving, data entry, revision and just about any other function you’d like someone’s mind to be focused on.
What You Can do to Halt the Use of Too Many Apps
As more HR professionals developing in to the next productivity officers you are in the position to make a change. Start by understand how work gets done, listen to your team. Ask what works best for them. As long as it aligns with company goals, there shouldn’t be a problem adjusting the company’s process.
You’ll likely hear that they prefer to bring communication and other app functions under as few apps as possible. If possible, make the changes for the sake of the team. Sure, this is a simplification of a process that could include costly subscription changes and cancellations. If needed, explain that the changes may be incremental to meet budgetary and other constraints. By all means, don’t break the bank, but also break the cycle of app overload.
Though the new responsibility in HR is productivity and the use of new tools, sometimes you need to go back to the successful basics. Exceptional productivity begins with great people professionals. You and the others in this field are the foundation of a productive work environment — not your apps.
By giving the team fewer apps, they are on a more unified platform that keeps information stored in one destination. Doing so helps keep workflows uninterrupted for more extended periods. So, if you want to keep work flowing, keep the functions housed under uniform apps. You may love Slack, Skype and all the rest but keep it down to one for the team. The same goes for project management, data storage, designs and any other functions the team uses to produce its work.
If you find yourself short on answers, consider going to the workers themselves. While management often has excellent leadership ideas and plans, they may be removed from the day-to-day. Without that first-hand insight, the feedback you’ll have to work with is assumptive at best. Always tap into the team when you want to better their work experience.
Lastly, don’t forget that it is ok to grab the bull by the horns. Assess your team to start. Analyze if the correct people are in the needed roles. From there, evaluate their core skills. What skills will you need to enhance, and which are ready for the goals of the job. While an app may claim to be able to evaluate talent, it still lacks the intangibles to assess the team from the level of a capable people professional like yourself.
Which Apps Do I Choose?
Now, you can determine which apps work best for your team. Do yourself a favor and make the team work under a uniform system. Doing so keeps vital team information and communication close together. Determine which is the ideal apps by speaking with team leaders and the team. Gauge their interests and understand the pros and cons. In some cases, you’ll find out that Department A uses one chat app for a similar reason that Department B uses the other. In these instances, you can often come to a resolution that makes one the clear-cut winner.
In other instances, you may need to be the final decision maker on which app to use. In this scenario, be sure to choose which benefits the team and your business overall. Sometimes, your preferred option may need to take a back seat for the greater good of the team. Though, as a skilled leader, making these types of decisions shouldn’t be much more than a pragmatic decision anyway.
The future appears bright for workplace collaboration downsizing via the streamlining of apps. The days of trying multiple apps for one function are waning. Department preferences cannot trump the overall company demand. By bringing apps under one roof, we enhance the employee experience through efficiency measures that increase productivity and cut down on stress.
While the trend surely could change again, a frustrated workforce is one that won’t go overlooked for long. Do yourself and your team a favor by implementing these steps if you haven’t already.
