Underscoring the Importance of Implementing and Measuring Efficiency in the Workplace

It’s pretty easy for us to spot inefficiency when we see it, but it’s another thing to build processes that work efficiently across an entire organization. What may seem like efficiency on paper often turns out to be chaos in practice. They key is being able to measure any organizational efficiency initiatives to ensure they’re really working for a company and not against it.

This is particularly critical in today’s business climate. Following a period of “growth at all costs” during the pandemic, organizations now face some challenging roadblocks. The IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook report states that growth is expected to fall from 3.4 percent in 2022 to 2.8 percent in 2023. The decline in economic growth has 77 percent of organizations prioritizing efficiency, with 52 percent of business leaders stating their organization won’t survive a recession without efficiency measures. The key to success, of course, is embracing the correct efficiency initiatives.

Work management platform Wrike recently released the results of a new study, The 2023 Efficiency Report, which evaluates how organizations manage challenges and opportunities in the current economic climate and harness efficiency in the workplace. Undertaken with the assistance of Sapio Research, the survey examined 1,000 business leaders and 2,000 knowledge workers across the UK and the U.S. to understand how recent efficiency measures impacted the workforce and which contributed most to organizational success. Here are the key discoveries from the report.

While reduced budgets and staff numbers have impacted many organizations, the study found that tech stack consolidation and new technologies that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) are the most effective measures to improve efficiency and reduce workplace stress when done holistically and strategically.

Organizations prioritizing efficiency have started investing in new technologies and accelerating digital transformation. Despite recent cutbacks, many organizations predict IT budget increases, focusing on work management software to streamline workloads and reduce what’s known as the “Dark Matter of Work,” or work that gets lost between siloed applications and teams.

"In an era where efficiency reigns supreme, our research illuminates the stark need for strategic digital transformations to unlock increased productivity and decrease workplace stress," says Thomas Scott, Interim CEO for Wrike. "Our report underlines the gravitas of moving beyond band-aid solutions to address inefficiencies that could cost organizations millions from a lack of visibility and alignment, wasted resources, and employee burnout. With robust consolidation efforts and leveraging advancements in AI, we aim to empower businesses in effectively managing complexities and improving their ROI, even amidst economic uncertainty."

Edited by Greg Tavarez