Small inefficiencies take a big toll on employees'productivity, emotions
Employees have confessed that file errors are a bigger source of stress than dealing with their boss, according to a new report, which revealed the broader impact of this inconvenience to organisations.
Smallpdf recently surveyed 1,002 employees in the United States to find that 23% of employees are spending at least four hours a week troubleshooting issues with their files.
The most frequent file problems in the workplace include Word documents (45%) and Excel sheets (45%), followed by PDFs (40%), image files (30%), and PowerPoint presentations (16%).
According to the findings, 65% of employees consider fixing a broken file as a more stressful ordeal in their work day than dealing with their boss.
In fact, 38% admitted that they have yelled, cursed, or hit their keyboard in frustration due to file issues.
Stress is just one of the impacts on employees, according to the report. Workers also noted that file errors disrupted their ability to do their job, team collaboration, and communication with clients and external partners.
At least two in five employees also said they had to work extra hours to fix the issue (44%) and felt embarrassed in front of their colleagues or clients (20%) because of file errors. Other repercussions include:
Missing a critical deadline or client deliverable (16%)
Receiving a performance warning or formal feedback (7%)
Being reprimanded in a meeting or review (6%)
Organisational impact of file errors
Meanwhile, small file errors also have a broader impact on organisations, according to the findings.
The four-hour disruption because of troubleshooting file issues may add up to $6,790 in lost salary per employee annually, according to the report.
For those in the finance industry, this figure surges to $13,694 per employee a year.
File issues may seem like small annoyances, but the evidence shows they add up to major financial and emotional costs for employees and employers, the report reads.
File errors also hit workplace productivity and retention. According to the report, file errors have reduced workers’ productivity (50%) and made employees lose focus (36%). Others said it caused:
Avoidance of certain tasks (29%)
Burnout (26%)
Job dissatisfaction (23%)
Another 25% even said they considered quitting their job because of outdated or inefficient document processes.
Fixing file errors at work
The findings underscore the need for organisations to avoid disruptive file errors and keep work moving smoothly.
It suggested training teams on file best practices and picking tools that employees actually like to use.
A quick guide or short training on versioning and file-sharing saves hours of confusion later, the report reads.
It also recommended minimising the number of platforms that employees use and automating repetitive tasks so the workforce can focus on more meaningful work.
Businesses that invest in smarter, more reliable tools can reduce stress, recover lost time, and strengthen employee satisfaction—all while saving thousands in hidden costs, the report reads.
https://www.hcamag.com/au/news/general/employees-reveal-the-one-thing-more-stressful-than-dealing-with-their-bosses/556387
