There’s no doubt about it. One of the most frustrating aspects of nearly any job is the technology that is used to complete daily tasks. When tech works well, you can do more, get things done faster, and complete tasks more accurately, but tech doesn’t always work the way we wish it would. When it doesn’t, you can expect to spend around 22 minutes every day trying to solve the problem. That amounts to over 95 hours every year trying to fix tech issues!
What problems slow down workers the most?
- Software updates
- Sluggish response times
- Uncertainty about the program
- Lost data
- Declined access
Software Updates and Upgrades
Updates can do a lot of good for your software systems. They can eliminate bugs, add new features, and make the entire program run more smoothly. However, they can also take up a lot of time. Instead of doing updates during work hours, have them scheduled to be completed when everyone is at home sleeping.
Upgrades are an issue too. Learning a new platform is time-consuming. It’s even worse if employees upgrade to a new system or program when everyone else is operating on something different. Only upgrade software when your company is fully ready, and learn how to defer things like the Windows 11 update until you’re ready for it.
Sluggish Response Times
One of the most annoying IT-related issues will always be sluggish response times. Whether you’re trying to load up a program, you’re clicking on something that isn’t loading, or the text you’re typing is way behind, you can waste a ton of time dealing with a slow computer.
The trouble is, there are many reasons why a computer can be slow like:
- Too many startup programs
- Failing hard drive
- Full hard drive
- Browser has too many add-ons
- Too many programs are running at once
- There’s a virus
- Not enough memory
In order to make things go faster, you have to know what’s causing the problem. Although it may take some time upfront, everyone will be happy that you took the time to find the problem and speed things up.
Uncertainty About the Program
How well do you and your employees know how to use a specific program? If you haven’t spent a lot of time in training or practicing how to use it, you will find yourself getting frustrated because you don’t know what to click on or how to locate the information you’re looking for. Proper training and tutorials can go a long way towards making sure everyone knows what the tech can do and how to do it.
Don’t want to click on something or try a new process because you worry how it might affect existing data? Many employees feel frustrated that they can’t use technology to its full potential because they’re worried about what might happen if they screw up. Give everyone access to a sandbox where they can practice worry-free so they can return to their desk and use the platform confidently.
Lost Data
Lost data is a big problem. It can spell trouble for your business if that data ends up in the wrong hands, but it can also suck up everyone’s time as you try to recover the data that has been lost.
Sometimes it’s a major breach or system crash that causes files to go missing, but more often than not, it’s simply the case that a file has been saved somewhere it shouldn’t have been, and now no one can find it. Know where to look for lost files so they can be recovered with as little frustration as possible. You should also put a new backup system in place so files can be retrieved easily in the future.
Declined Access
It can be frustrating for employees to come up against a brick wall when searching for access or information, but role-based access control is important. Just make sure there’s a way for employees to request access so they can get it when they need it.
The more common frustration is declined access because of a forgotten password! Eliminate the need for your employees to have to remember or reset their passwords all the time by providing everyone with a password manager.
Tech can make life easier, better, and faster, but that doesn’t mean it’s perfect. When you know all the ways tech can slow you down in the office, you can look for ways for everyone to get back up and running as fast as possible.
