In part two of a digital work trends report by work management platform Slingshot, a majority of just over 300 full-time U.S.-based professionals said a lack of guidance from leaders impeded their time management skills.
According to Slingshot, nearly two-thirds (64%) of the employees surveyed said they lose up to two hours a week because they lack deadlines. About a quarter said their productivity was also affected when they were unsure of which tasks and projects should be prioritized.
Time Management
Good data has been foundational to time management, according to part one of the report. But, as shown in the most recent survey results, employees can’t do anything with good data if they’re overloaded with competing priorities. It's not the difficulty or quantity of work that's problematic, but the approach to workflow and guidance on which tasks to complete first.
Nearly four in 10 (37%) respondents said their productivity is hindered when overloaded with tasks. A quarter (25%) reported uncertainty about their priorities in these situations, and nearly a fifth (17%) said they have no set deadlines for their work.
“Employees often feel overloaded, unsure of priorities and deadlines, and afraid to say no to additional work — even when they have too much on their plates already. And leaders are left scrambling when employees haven’t been focusing on the highest-value task or miss deadlines after taking on too much. This is all caused by a lack of visibility and alignment across teams,” said Dean Guida, a founder of Slingshot.
This lack of foresight in managing tasks can impact productivity and ultimately lead to employee frustration and turnover, exacerbating the problems finance leaders face when trying to staff teams.
Meetings and Perception of Leadership
Nearly seven in 10 (69%) employee respondents said their leaders feel the need to closely supervise employees due to issues with the quality of work (69%) or meeting deadlines (52%). But, despite needing help with work prioritization, most employees believe taking time to discuss status with managers isn't helpful.
Nearly half (43%) said they have unnecessary status meetings on their calendars. A quarter (25%) of employees said work meetings are the most frustrating part of their day.
CFOs, who have turned to tools like ChatGPT and open-door policies to improve team communication, may continue to benefit from developing and modernizing communication.
"Building trust and safety with other parts of the company is important because it helps drive collaboration," said Ilana Esterrich, CFO of Planned Parenthood at the World Finance Forum’s CFO event last week when discussing this topic. She, alongside a panel of other leaders, emphasized setting the tone for sharing ideas and driving leadership.
Generational Breakdowns
What do workers do when they don’t know what to prioritize? Over half (55%) of employees aged 18 to 26 (Generation Z) said they would take the initiative to identify priorities by communicating with colleagues. Nearly half (49%) of millennials said they would guess, while over a third (35%) of Gen X and Y (ages 43 to 58) would choose on their own.
Communication, often not seen as a strength of Gen Z, may not be an issue for this age group if leaders approach communication strategies with open-mindedness.