Only a fifth of workers think hybrid working tools have substantially improved productivity

A new poll from IT consultancy Doherty Associates, claims that while over three-quarters (77 percent) of workers in two key market sectors say their company has introduced new technology to support hybrid working, only around a fifth (18 percent) of respondents believe it has substantially improved their productivity.

The survey of 889 employees working in the UK Capital Markets and Legal industries found that only 25 percent of IT decision-makers say they noticed a substantial improvement in productivity following the implementation of hybrid working.

Despite these reservati9ons, firms are still keen to push ahead with hybrid working. The poll found that 54 percent of Capital Market workers stated their firms have changed their hybrid working policy within the last year, with 4 percent changing their policy in the last month.

The IT decision-makers’ perception is a reality among workers, who feel overwhelmed by new technology tools:

• Almost a quarter (23 percent) think they have too many different tools to be productive.
• Over a third (35 percent) struggle to find the information and data needed to do their jobs.
• Of those who struggle, 15 percent of workers state this is a daily occurrence.

Terry Doherty, Founder and CEO, Doherty Associates said: “It’s clear that across all levels of an organisation, the technology implemented to support hybrid working is not meeting the needs of the team. Business leaders want to support productivity and inspire collaboration in their teams wherever they are, but the reality is that employees are struggling with new tools.

“Technology is ultimately about helping people – the implementation and application needs to be people-centric. During the pandemic and after in the world of hybrid working, we’ve seen rapid adoption of various communication and collaboration tools. Every organisation would be wise to audit the technology they are using and gain feedback and insights into what is working and what is not and set out clear processes that focus on people.”