20 minutes a day lost to tech

The average employee in construction who uses IT loses more than 20 minutes a day of productive time due to technology issues.

A new report released by Managed 24/7, a managed IT services business, also found there is the biggest skills gap in the construction industry, with 19% of respondents disagreeing that their IT skills match the level required by their work.

It is widely accepted that the UK is facing a productivity crisis and this report outlines, for the first time, how much of this loss is caused by poor IT systems and support. The report suggested that IT failure could cost ‘UK plc’ £35 billion per year if the average amount of time lost was applied to all full-time workers, the equivalent of the entire population of Birmingham and Milton Keynes not working all year.  

The top four issues experienced by IT users in the GB construction sector in the last year were: slow running systems or equipment (64%); failures in connection (48%); outdated kit or software (26%); and lack of expert support (20%).

The report also found that among employees who use IT at work: 32% believe that their workplace IT systems are damaging their ability to do a good job, a rate which rises to 37% for firms with more than 500 employees; 44% believe that IT problems directly cost their business time and money; 40% agree that they had better IT systems at home than at work; and 24% who have experienced IT issues said they have caused customers to complain, a proportion that rises to 30% in firms with 500 or more employees.

John Pepper, CEO and Founder of Managed 24/7, said: “The UK is facing a productivity crisis. The UK currently ranks seventh in the G7 and 17th in the G20 for productivity per person, and fixing our outdated and poorly managed IT systems and support should play a significant role in closing this gap, especially in the UK construction sector.”