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Survey Finds Frontline Workers Spend 39% of Week on Manual Tasks

New research commissioned by AI platform Cogna surveyed 500 frontline workers and found that 39% of the average working week is spent on manual tasks that could be automated or significantly improved through better technology.
In response to these inefficiencies, 65% of employees developed 'shadow IT' solutions—unofficial systems like spreadsheets and messaging apps—to bypass inadequate company technology, yet only 22% of senior decision-makers acknowledge this disconnect.
Cogna CEO and founder Ben Peters said, "Digital transformation does not succeed in the boardroom; it succeeds when it changes the work people do every day," urging firms to formalize unofficial fixes into secure tools.
Martin Rimmer, chief people officer at Cadent Gas, said, "the best digital tools are the ones that solve a clear operational problem," emphasizing that small workflow improvements significantly impact productivity in physical industries.
Despite organisations investing an average of £13 million in digital transformation over five years, 79% of leaders worry competitors are advancing faster, while 34% of staff already report AI has improved their jobs.

Insights by Ground AI