Corporate managers are spending more time on unproductive administrative tasks than on strategic initiatives and other requirements.
Nine in 10 of 1,000 managers surveyed in the US and the UK were found to spend time on administrative tasks such as providing status updates, filling out forms, requesting support and updating spreadsheets, which are outside their core job function.
According to the report, "Today’s State of Work: The Productivity Drain," more than 80% of those surveyed rely primarily on inefficient, manual tools such as email, telephone calls and personal visits to get work done.
More than 30% of survey respondents said it takes over 10 individual interactions like emails, phone calls or personal visits to be ready for a new employee’s first day.
ServiceNow conducted the research and chief strategy officer Dave Wright said: "Email was never intended to run a company’s business processes.
"It is a communication vehicle that has been bastardized to fill a gap that exists in the systems permeated throughout the enterprise."
Of those surveyed, 75% said work processes and systems should work more like those they experience as consumers.
ServiceNow said organisations can overcome the issues through automation and adoption of service management software and practices, which can replace emails, phone calls and spreadsheets with automated workflows.
