Workplace friction is leading to frustrated employees and inefficient workflows, according to a new survey
More than half of Australian employees say organisational changes negatively impacts on their efficiency, according to a new report, which outlined four workplace frictions faced by organisations.
Workplace friction is defined in a new Dayforce report as the processes or challenges at work that cause organisations to waste significant time and money.
"Think of friction as the enemy of productivity and efficiency," said Steve Holdridge, president of Dayforce, in the report. "It's work that doesn't have to be done, time spent on the wrong things, and energy that doesn't have to be wasted energy."
One of the four types of workplace friction is change friction, where 55% of Australian employees say organisational changes at their company negatively impact employee efficiency.
Only 45% of employees also said their organisation is good or very good at communicating change.
"Prioritising communication during change management planning can help employees navigate change and focus on important tasks," Dayforce said.
Other types of workplace frictions present in Australian organisations are:
- Staffing friction, which covers the lack of manpower when someone calls in sick to work (69%) and the challenge of workforce scheduling (31%)
- Agility friction, which covers the lack of structured processes for upskilling or reskilling employees, where only 39% of the respondents said they have.
- Technology friction, where having too many technology platforms (73%) can often reduce efficiency instead of improving it (69%)
Addressing Workplace Frictions
Rob Husband, Head of Revenue – APJ, Dayforce, said these frictions at work are leading to frustrated employees, inefficient workflows, and wasted time and resources.
"Tackling this complexity crisis requires reducing friction caused by poor communication, mismatched technology, and aligning worker skills with defined roles, which in turn will result in a more engaged, productive staff," Husband said.
Leaders are also urged to create workplaces that are flexible and can withstand change.
"It's important to have the right mindset and supportive tools that enable teams to not just survive, but thrive, and that can take care of the underlying processes to ensure they execute seamlessly," Husband added.
