The survey of full and part time office workers across the UK, Germany, France and the US uncovers the biggest pain points of modern work and what employees truly need to feel productive beyond merely checking off their to-do lists. The findings reveal a pressing need for change, particularly as AI offers unprecedented capabilities to drive these much-needed efficiencies.

Creative time is scarce for UK office workers, with less than half( 42 %) finding enough time in their day for creative work. This scarcity is a global trend, with the UK’ s figure slightly below Germany and the US( 46 %) but comparable to France( 41 %). Additionally, only one-tenth( 11 %) of UK office workers propose creative ideas a few times per week, while over a third( 35 %) indicate they feel less creative at work, a figure higher than Germany( 28 %) and the US( 30 %).

Almost a quarter of UK office workers( 24 %) report spending six to ten hours per week just on administrative tasks, such as emails, scheduling and document processing. This is a significant portion of the working week dedicated to non-core activities. Beyond general admin, under a fifth( 17 %) of UK office workers dedicate six or more hours a week to strategic meetings and decision-making.

This is a common desire across Europe, with German office workers and French office workers also prioritising stress reduction.

The overwhelming preference among workers to use extra time for managing existing burdens or alleviating stress, rather than for growth or innovation, reveals a vicious cycle where relentless workloads and mundane tasks erode the capacity and desire for self-development and creative thought.

Empowering individuals to make a real impact requires both adequate time and critically, having the right tools in place. While approximately a third( 32 %) of UK workers express openness to AI tools for a modest saving zero to four hours weekly, the true potential for efficiency gains appears far greater. A recent internal survey at Dropbox, revealed that 96 % of its employees leverage AI weekly for tasks like information retrieval, brainstorming, coding, documentation and drafting, resulting in an impressive average saving of 7.9 hours per week.

The data unequivocally points to a need for systemic transformation. Whether it’ s adopting new AI tools or embracing flexible working models to empower employees with greater autonomy over their schedules, making space for creativity and strategic thinking starts with understanding how people actually spend their time. x

32 www. intelligentcxo. com