32 Fascinating Statistics About Productivity

We’re all aware that productivity is key to accomplishing our goals in both our personal and professional lives, right?

Similarly, we all know that to make money and have a successful business you need a productive workforce, right? But are workers always 100% productive? Not according to research. Studies suggest employees aren’t even productive for 60% of the day, and most people believe that they’re more productive when they work remotely.

In the rest of this piece, we look at some fascinating and incontrovertible statistics about employee productivity that might change the way you view productivity for both employees and businesses as a whole.

Let’s dive right into some fascinating employee productivity statistics.

Fascinating Employee Productivity Statistics

Here are some general stats to get you thinking.

• Researchers at the University of California found that, when interrupted, employees can take over 23 minutes to get back on track and refocus.
• On average, an employee is productive for around 60% of the day regardless of their profession. This is even worse for those who work in an office, who are productive for just 2 hours 23 minutes per day, according to research conducted by Voucher Cloud.
• Freelancers work an average of 36 hours a week. Assuming they work five days a week, this would mean they are productive for over 7 hours a day.
• A team that is engaged and enthusiastic about the work they do may have 41% less absenteeism and a 59% reduction in staff turnover.

Now let’s move on to stats for those working from home.

Productivity Stats for Working Remotely

Do you think you’re more productive when working from home? These statistics appear to support that view.

• People who work remotely are much less likely (over 50%) to take time off, either due to illness, holidays, or personal days.
• Allowing just one day of working from home each month increases job satisfaction, productivity, and happiness. For more on the link between happiness and productivity, see “ Does Being Happy Make You More Productive?”
• According to a survey conducted by CoSo Cloud, 77% of employees are more productive when working remotely.
• Three-quarters of people who worked remotely during the Covid-19 pandemic report that they’re more productive when working at home.
• More than a quarter of employees think they’re more productive when they work remotely because they don’t have to commute.

Productivity Statistics in the UK

• Based on data collected from nigh on 2000 UK employees, almost 80% of people didn’t believe that they are productive for the whole of an 8-hour workday.
• Social media is the most common source of distraction, with almost half of employees using social media at work.
• Over 70% of people worry about their finances or job during working hours.
• Most workers in the UK believe gamification may boost productivity.

It’s time to look at some productivity statistics that take account of an employer’s viewpoint.

An Employer’s View of Productivity

The following are some fascinating productivity statistics from an employer’s standpoint.

• 64% of business leaders around the world believe that flexible working has a positive impact on employee productivity.
• Most managers who work with teams who are working from home are concerned about productivity, and whether people are going to be able to meet deadlines.
• Over two-thirds of businesses report that the productivity of those working from home has increased from 35% to 40%.

Stats on Factors Affecting Employee Productivity

These stats highlight what businesses can lose owing to factors affecting productivity.

• Obesity and other chronic health problems that negatively affect productivity cause employers to lose more than $150 billion a year.
• Stress-related conditions cost businesses between $200-$500 billion each year.
• Employees lose about 24 billion hours every year due to unproductive meetings and subsequently lower productivity. Check out our ten tips for productive meetings.
• The most popular productivity tool is Microsoft Office.
• Profits can rise by as much as 21% if workers feel more engaged in what there are doing and are thus more productive.
• Two and a half hours of exercise each week can increase your productivity.

Before we wrap things up, let’s look at some productivity problem statistics.

Productivity Problem Statistics and the Impact of Communication and Technology

You might have read about some of these before, especially if you’ve been following this blog for a while, but nonetheless, they are worth repeating. Let’s get into it.

• Multitasking or task-switching too much can make you 40% less productive.
• Most workers daydream while in meetings.
• Almost 40% of workers report having fallen asleep in meetings.
• Nearly 75% of workers admit to engaging in other tasks when in a meeting.
• Almost 90% of workers complain about ineffective meetings.
• People waiting to speak to an expert on something, or to someone with the skills they need to help them takes up about 5 hours every week.
• Many workers believe that video conferencing has a positive impact on productivity.
• 80% of employees report being stressed because of poor communication in the workplace.
• Wearable technology increases productivity by almost 10%. It also boosts job satisfaction.
• Almost half of workers believe they’re more productive when using technology.

Wrapping Up

Given the many advantages of workplace productivity, it’s no surprise businesses and employees are always looking for the best ways to increase it. We hope this short foray into the world of fascinating statistics about productivity has given you some useful insight.

Maintaining productivity at a certain level is hard for any business or employee. However, the rewards are more than worth the trouble if you’re willing to give it a go.

We hope these 32 fascinating statistics about productivity shed light on the challenges we face in maximising our efficiency. By using insights to shape our daily lives, we can unlock our true productivity potential, achieve greater success, and experience a more fulfilling and balanced approach to work and life. Remember, productivity is not just about doing more; it’s about doing meaningful work in a focused way.

If you enjoyed this post, you might want to read “Is Remote Working Good for Productivity?” before you go.