What is hindering enterprise teams’ productivity and communication? According to this new study from Workfront, antiquated tools and lack of structure are causing office workers to put in more hours and increasing confusion in the workplace:

• 52% of office workers log into work outside of business hours every day.
• 81% rate themselves highest by far in productivity compared to their co-workers, managers, leaders, and direct reports.
• Millennials are rated as most creative and tech-savvy, yet least cooperative and least likely to take responsibility.

81% of office workers rate themselves as among the most productive in their office, over and above their co-workers (61%) and managers (53%) with regards to productivity. These findings are according to a survey by Workfront, the leading provider of cloud-based Enterprise Work Management solutions, and conducted by Harris Poll among more than 600 employed adults.

The findings further reveal that 90% of office workers experience conflict with other departments/groups/teams, up from 80% in 2014. Lack of communication/miscommunication (33%) and conflicting priorities (23%) are the two biggest reasons for cross-team conflict.

Lost productivity is the biggest casualty of cross-team conflict (36%), followed by low morale/high turnover (22%).

See: Here is the Key to Close Productivity Gaps…

“Eliminating wasteful meetings, finding a healthy work-life balance, and effectively collaborating with colleagues are all possible with the right discipline and the right tools. By implementing a work management application, workers have a single source of truth that allows complete visibility into the work being done and eliminates communication barriers on projects. More importantly, it allows teams to align with company priorities so that everyone is working on the right things at the right time,” says Joe Staples, chief marketing officer at Workfront.

Some interesting findings from the 2015 State of Work report by Workfront include:

• When does the week end? 82% of office workers log into work/work email before or after standard business hours, and more than half (52%) do so every day during a typical workweek. Nearly three-fourths (72%) log into work/work email on the weekends and 39% do so every weekend.
• The reasons to always be on the clock: Office workers who log into work/work email outside standard business hours do so primarily to get ahead of their work (52%) or because they feel they have too much work to do (39%). Quarter (25%) of office workers feel that this is expected at their company. Nearly 10% state they do it to look more dedicated than their colleagues.
• Unnecessary distractions: The vast majority (89%) of office workers say one or more factors get in the way of their work. More specifically, top offenders are “wasteful” meetings (57%), excessive emails (40%), unexpected phone calls (37%), and excessive oversight (35%).

While the picture looks bleak, not all is bad in the world of work because office workers are feeling the love, with 91% stating they feel at least one person at work “has my back.” Office workers are also feeling empowered at work (78%) and that their boss listens to them (87%). Additionally, most office workers feel that technology helps to improve their productivity.

More than 9 in 10 office workers who access work from anywhere (94%) say it has a positive impact on their productivity, as do roughly 8 in 10 of those who use mobile devices (82%) or project management software (79%) for work.

Also read: Productivity stuck in reverse amid labour crunch

Image credit: flickr.com