Workplace Survey Finds Nearly 90% of Young Workers Having Difficulty Working Remote

Communication tools identified as key pain point and hindering productivity for young UK workers

LONDON, April 28, 2020 – Smartsheet (NYSE: SMAR), the platform for enterprise achievement, today announced that 89% of Generation Z and 91% of Millennial workers report difficulty working from home as a result of COVID-19, according to a global survey of professionals conducted by ENGINE INSIGHTS and commissioned by Smartsheet.

Key findings include:

• 64% of Generation Z and 61% of Millennials in the UK feel the amount of time spent on video calls makes it hard to get their work done.
• Seventy-nine percent of the UK workforce feels less connected to their teams’; young workers especially so with 85% of Generation Z and 81% of Millennials reporting this issue.
• Sixty-eight percent of UK workers feel less informed about what is going on within their company since they started working from home. Young workers feel it the most, with 79% of Generation Z and 69% of Millennials reporting this, versus 66% of Generation X and 67% of Boomers. 

“This research shows that the key to helping remote workers cope with the current circumstance, and thriving in the longer-term, goes far beyond simply connecting people and teams through video-based technology,” said Smartsheet CEO Mark Mader. “To be effective, people need to stay deeply connected to their work and the work of their teams. They also need context, structure, tracking, and visibility into their work. Providing those things is more important now than ever.”

The survey revealed several additional gaps in how younger and older workers approached productivity and workplace technology, including:

Most UK workers, especially the younger generation, are struggling to be productive and communicate following the transition to remote work.

• Nearly half of Generation Z workers (48%) in the UK say it has been difficult to stay organized and prioritize the most important work. 
• Nearly half of Millennials (48%) noted that communicating with colleagues has been difficult, while 32% of Generation Z workers say the same. 

UK workers are also finding it harder to gather information on project updates. 

• Nearly half (49%) of UK workers said it’s harder to give status updates on projects now that they’re working remotely. Only 11% said it’s easier.
• Over half (58%) of UK workers said it is harder to get status updates on projects now that they’re working remotely. Only 9% say it is easier.
• Thirty-eight percent of UK workers said that understanding the status of projects they’re involved in and how they can best move them forward has been difficult since they began working from home.

*Survey methodology

The survey was conducted by ENGINE INSIGHTS among a sample of 1,004 adults in the UK ages 18+ who are currently employed, previously worked in an office setting but are now working from home due to COVID-19, and work for companies with 1,000+ employees. This survey was live on April 8-15, 2020.

About Smartsheet

Smartsheet (NYSE: SMAR) is the platform for enterprise achievement. By aligning people and technology so organizations can move faster and drive innovation, Smartsheet enables its 84,000 customers and millions of users to achieve more. Visit www.smartsheet.com to learn more.

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