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Approvals: Why Workers Are Frustrated — And What to Do About It

From time-off requests to expense reports, the flow of items requiring managerial approval never stops. Understandably, many managers’ workloads prevent them from attending to all of these approvals at once, especially in the absence of technology that simplifies the task.

But it’s equally understandable that employees would feel frustrated when the approvals they need are slow — painfully slow — to arrive. And as recent survey results show, they are indeed frustrated.

The survey

Commissioned by Paycom, the OnePoll survey asked 1,000 American office workers — most of whom are or were working from home due to the pandemic — to elaborate on their technology-related frustrations. While the questions and answers focused on workplace technology in general, the process of manager approvals came up more than once, suggesting it is very much on employees’ minds.

Startlingly, receiving approvals from managers and supervisors ranked as the second-highest struggle for employees working from home. A full 25% reported problems in getting the approvals they need to do their jobs.

Knowing this, the next statistic should come as less of a surprise: The three features employees would most like to see in their HR tech were access to time-off accruals, the ability to see the details of their paycheck and — you guessed it — better management capability.

As you consider these results, keep in mind that respondents in the same survey reported losing an average of three hours of productivity per week to inefficient workplace technology and that 67% do not believe their company sufficiently prioritizes digital transformation.

The solution

Like so many facets of the modern workplace experience, the ability to manage employees can be dramatically enhanced with a switch to the right HR tech.

Paycom’s award-winning Manager on-the-Go® makes it all as simple as a few clicks on a smartphone. By enabling managers to stay on top of approvals from anywhere, 24/7, the tool generates a series of mutually reinforcing benefits. Managers are elevated to a new level of digital convenience and gain time to serve other organizational needs.

Meanwhile, HR frees itself from the obligation of sending multiple reminders to managers (or even physically chasing them down) to complete outstanding tasks.

Finally, and crucially, employees shed the stress that comes from waiting for approvals that seem to be forever pending.

With Manager on-the-Go and other tools, everybody wins. This includes C-suite executives, who will reap the bottom-line benefits of digital transformation in the form of increased efficiency and higher employee engagement. After all, employees want better, more efficient tech. Now is the time to make sure they have it.

If you’re ready to learn more, don’t hesitate to schedule a demo.

DISCLAIMER: The information provided herein does not constitute the provision of legal advice, tax advice, accounting services or professional consulting of any kind. The information provided herein should not be used as a substitute for consultation with professional legal, tax, accounting or other professional advisers. Before making any decision or taking any action, you should consult a professional adviser who has been provided with all pertinent facts relevant to your particular situation and for your particular state(s) of operation.