Many people have experienced the feeling of being asked to do something, knowing deep down that they shouldn't but then in a split second convincing themselves why they must do it. Six weeks later, they wonder why they don't have the time to do work that interests their passions. The amount of collaborative work time that is spent on email, IM and phone has risen by 50% over the past decade. This figure now accounts for 85% or more of most people's work week. The Covid-19 pandemic also caused this figure to rise. These invisible demands are limiting organizations' ability to innovate and be more agile. They can also lead to career derailment, burnout, as well as a decline in mental and physical well-being. There are many things organizations can do to help their employees work more efficiently in this setting, which will ultimately improve employee productivity and retention.
Over the past decade, collaboration time has increased by 50% to more than 85% of people's work week. This number has seen a sharp increase since the Covid-19 pandemic. People are spending more time in short and fragmented meetings each week, with voice and video calls times increasing by 65% and voice and video calling times increasing by doubling. To make matters worse, collaboration requirements are shifting further into the evenings and starting earlier in the morning.
These demands can often be overlooked by managers and hamper organizations' efforts to innovate and become more agile. They can also lead to burnout and career derailment for individuals, as well as a decline in mental and physical well-being.
Forward-looking companies are responding to the increasing demands for collaboration by taking measures to protect their employees through organizational network analysis (ONA). Take, for example:
Two large life science organizations used network analysis to analyze their calendar data and find ways to cut down on redundant meetings.
One global software company has focused on email to reduce its volume, length and ccing redundancies.
An internationally recognized insurance company has used network analysis to identify overwhelmed employees and teach them how to reduce overload.
A global service organization also implemented a 60 second timeout button. Employees can press a button to let others know that they are taking a mindful break after a difficult time. Employees can practice mindfulness for 60 seconds. However, it is not like giving a band-aid on an amputee.
Focusing only on the quantity of collaborative requirements misses two key drivers of collaborative overload: 1) inefficiencies and subsequent cognitive switching cost of always-on culture and 2) personal motivations that cause us to jump into collaborative work too fast.
Reduce the inefficiencies of Always-On Cultures
Collaborative overload does not simply relate to volume. The complexity of demands creates an invisible, but equally dangerous counterpart: cognitive switching costs. Jennifer Senior, a columnist in The New York Times said that Covid has created a series of staccato pulses with two-minute activities for home and work that many people are finding difficult to manage. Cognitive psychologists found that simply responding to a message can lead to a 64-second recovery period to get back on track. Gloria Mark, a professor of informatics from the University of California Irvine, found that it can take up to 23 minutes to get back on track after an interruption. Although people can adapt to interruptions with practice, they often experience higher levels of stress, frustration, and increased effort.
Covid has caused switching costs to soar. As people try to squeeze more collaboration into their day, meetings have become longer than usual. IMs are becoming a common source of switching costs. One company saw IMs increase 52% between 6 p.m. & 12 p.m.
The Connected Commons research on collaborative overload over the past decade has shown that people who are more productive collaborators and have greater impact on networks and take less time from people are more efficient. This is partly due to how they structure their work to reduce the cost of being always connected.
A time block that is reflective and based on your personal rhythms. This could mean answering emails in the morning, and then taking a two-hour break to reflect. Others may find it creative work, answering emails in 30-minute blocks throughout the day.
. This could mean answering emails in the morning, and then taking a two-hour break to do reflective work. Others may find it creative work and responding to emails in 30-minute blocks throughout the day. Triage rules for email. Email is a chain that produces more email. We all have the natural urge to respond to any request we feel satisfied with. People who are more efficient tend to place emails in different categories so that they can be processed at a particular time.
. Email is the mother of all email. We all have a natural desire to respond to any quick question that we feel satisfied with solving. People who are more efficient tend to put emails in different categories so that they can be processed at a particular time. Standing meetings can speed up team problem solving. Leaders who are more efficient use weekly meetings to address one-off issues and not allow for excessive disruptions. Slack and Microsoft Teams are used to share issues with team members. The team is encouraged not only to resolve the problems but also to post them on these platforms. Leaders find that there are fewer one-off issues flowing through them as their team becomes more adept at identifying who to call for help.
Organisational actions that can reduce switching costs
Companies can do a lot to help employees succeed by reducing the cost of switching. Slack and Zoom were used to collaborate during the Covid pandemic. Uber monitored the use of these tools and found that there was a 40% rise in meetings and a 45% rise in average participants per meeting. 2) There was a more than 3x increase of Zoom meetings and Slack messaging. These interactions led to a 30% drop in focus time, which is defined as the amount of time you can devote to a task or project for two-plus hours each day. Uber's team discovered that employees had a strong relationship with their focus time and productivity. This was measured using employee surveys. Data showed that people are more productive when they schedule more meetings and take part in more meetings. Meetings can cause employees to lose focus, which can lead to lower productivity.
Uber discovered that employees are able to have more control over their work and feel better when they have the right tools and insights. Uber is using a dual-pronged approach to tackling collaborative overload. It uses information and empowers employees. In late 2020, the company conducted an experiment where they shared the effects of focus time on productivity with a group of employees. Then, they compared their focus time with employees who didn't get the information. The informed group saw a moderate improvement in their focus time. They also developed an app that allowed employees to set the amount of time they need and then optimize their calendars by moving and managing meetings according (much like a virtual executive assistant). The experiment group saw a 20 percent increase in their focus time.
Uber's experiences are still in development, but they have shown that it takes both information AND enablement to overcome collaborative overload. While insights are essential to give employees the context for action, they don't provide a way for them to take action. Employees may not be able to use specific interventions like workspace design and focus time applications, but they might not understand why they are so important. To make a difference, you need both the tools and the context.
Uber will be combining information and enablement as they move into 2021. This will allow its workforce to collaborate more effectively, increase their performance, and improve their overall well-being. Uber is using insights and tips from other teams to improve collaboration in company communications, employee newsletters, manager development resources, company meetings, and company communications. They are also continuing to empower their teams using tools and apps.
The Mirror is also home to the Enemy
Companies are overlooking the fact that disruptions and switching costs aren't the only factors that cause collaborative overload. Instead, they are focusing on the volume of collaborative requests. The personal motivations of each person can also be a source of overload. We all contribute to our own overload by jumping in when we don't have to. People often blame others for creating overload in their work environments, such as back-to-back meetings and demanding clients. Our research shows that approximately 50% of people who experience overload are able to see themselves in the mirror.
All of us jump into too many partnerships, which can happen in micro-moments whenever a request is made, or when we see an opportunity we feel we could help with. Many people have experienced the feeling of being asked to do something, knowing deep down that they shouldn't. But then in a split second, they convince themselves that it is worth doing. They do it and wonder six weeks later why there is never enough time to do work they enjoy.
This is the biggest driver of personal collaboration overload, and it's the hardest to change. Deep motivations and methods of working that we've learned since grade school are what trigger us to get involved. The reality is that collaboration overload can be dangerous. It feels good to feel important and in the thick it all, even when it doesn't.
Our research revealed that many people are driven by identity triggers. To avoid jumping in, it is important to identify your trigger and create a mantra for the moment. A Silicon Valley executive who is a servant-based leader and has a desire to help others learned to say yes. Another consumer products leader who has achieved great success would ask, "Am I the only one qualified to tackle this problem?"
Identity and reputation triggers such as a desire to help others, a sense of fulfillment from accomplishments, a desire to be influential/recognized, or a concern about being seen as a good colleague and contributor.
such as a desire to help others, a sense of fulfillment from accomplishments, a desire to be influential/recognized, or a concern about being seen as a good colleague and contributor. Fear of losing control over a project or outcome, anxiety and the need to control are triggers.
Organisational actions that can reduce self-driven overload
General Mills is a prime example of how forward-looking companies can help employees cope with anxiety-driven overload. General Mills faced a unique challenge when they moved to remote work during the pandemic. Employees had to adjust to the new work environment. Meanwhile, demand for core products from General Mills soared as panic buying drove grocery stores to empty their shelves.
This resulted in a unique collaborative environment that was unlike any other the company had ever experienced. Based on data from Microsoft Workplace Analytics, the average time that employees spent in collaboration per week at March 2020's start was 21.4 hours. This is based on internal General Mills data. The average time spent in collaboration rose to 25.7 hours per semaine by July, an increase of 20%.
The company analyzed employee experience data and combined it with collaboration data to see that employee negativity was increasing. They were able to identify and correct the problem to stop stress and burnout from increasing.
One example was to focus on manufacturing and front-line workers. Take Care Tuesday was the name of this weekly effort. It provided reminders that were specific, prioritized and focused to all leaders in order to support team dynamics and overall well-being. Each message was focused on the leadership skills needed and offered quick tips for how to keep the focus shifting each week from taking good care of oneself to taking better care of others to taking good care of the business. Take Care of the Business, a Take Care Tuesday message reminded leaders that consistent and clear communication is important during times of change. Here are some tips:
Share a story that inspires others to see where they need to go and where they are at the moment. Continue to grab people's attention by explaining why you believe this change is necessary. Give yourself time to ask questions and reflect.
Leaders and employees have appreciated these simple reminders with action steps and links for additional resources on a consistent basis.
This was a significant step. At that stage in the Covid evolution, many organizations were more concerned about engaging virtual employees through more meetings and email. General Mills, however, had the right analytics to recognize that this would have been a mistake. The correlation between fragmented work and negative moods and fatigue was.55. This means there was a significant impact of collaboration overload on employee well being.
Instead of inviting people to more meetings, the solution was to help people organize their time differently. General Mills continues to use data to assist individuals and teams in managing the changing nature of collaborative demands. This is especially important as new teams prepare for a hybrid and flexible work environment.
These analytic insights led to three key actions:
Implementation of a Free Form Fridays policy. To allow employees to recharge, get caught up on emails and engage in deep work, they were asked to block their calendars at 2:00pm on Fridays.
. To give employees the opportunity to recharge, deepen their work and catch up on emails, they were asked to lock their calendars at 2:00pm every Friday. Initiation of pulse surveys more often focused on stress and well-being. Employee listening was a fast way to identify targeted actions. These surveys led to more visible reminders by senior leaders to employees about the importance prioritizing the most important work and focusing attention on self-care. Many senior leaders used video messages to communicate with their employees and use a more regular, unscripted, authentic conversation with them. They stressed the importance of prioritization, self care, and a "test-and-learn" mindset.
Employee listening was a fast way to identify targeted actions. These surveys led to more visible reminders by senior leaders to employees about the importance prioritizing the most important work and focusing attention on self-care. Many senior leaders used video messages to communicate with their employees and use a more regular, unscripted, authentic conversation with them. They stressed the importance of prioritization, self care, and a "test-and-learn" mindset. Ways of Working tools and training were developed and implemented for units that have high levels of stress, collaboration, and negativity. The Ways of Working interventions started with briefing leaders about the state of collaboration among employees and initiating a discussion about ways the organization could act differently. Each unit was then given a group session to discuss more effective techniques and how to avoid collaborating overload.
General Mills was able, thanks to these initiatives, to reduce the risk of collaboration overload during the Covid work-from home period that is still in place. The results for units that attended the Ways of Working sessions have been particularly encouraging. These General Mills teams have averaged eight hours less collaboration per week. These groups also report a reduction in non-value-added meetings and more organized meetings. All this without any adverse effects on stress levels. The lessons from these teams are being used to improve team effectiveness and team launch. This is a way General Mills can support employee well-being as well as help all departments become more productive collaborators.
Looking forward
All employees feel the stress of collaboration overload. There is no way out as we move into a post-pandemic work world. Analytics can be used to identify significant efficiencies in this hyperconnected work environment if they are applied correctly. Organizations that empower their employees to work in this environment will be able to retain and improve performance.
