Where the Week Goes
How knowledge workers lose time before the real work starts: searching, coordinating, meetings, interruptions, email, app switching and duplicated work.
7 facts from 35 studies. See the chapter on one poster.
- F-0119–25%
How much of the work week do knowledge workers spend searching for information?
The most-cited studies put it at 19 to 25 percent of the work week, or about 9 to 10 hours. Across all five studies the estimates run from about 5 to 15 hours a week, because each one defines searching a little differently.
- F-0253–61%
How much of the work day goes to coordinating work rather than doing it?
Between 53 and 61 percent, or roughly three of every five working hours. Four independent creators (Asana, McKinsey with IDC data, Microsoft and Workfront) land in that band, though each draws the line around coordination a little differently.
- F-033–18 h
How many hours a week do people spend in meetings, and how much of it is wasted?
Studies range from about 3 to 18 hours a week for the average office worker, and managers report about 22. Workers judge roughly a third to two thirds of their meeting time unnecessary or unproductive.
- F-0420–26 min
How long does it take to get back to a task after an interruption?
Field studies that watched people at work found it takes about 20 to 26 minutes to return to an interrupted task, usually after handling about two other things first. The often quoted "23 minutes" comes from this research and counts that whole detour.
- F-0513–28%
How much of the work week do knowledge workers spend on email and chat?
Email alone takes 13 to 28 percent of the work week, depending on how it is measured. Microsoft's usage data adds Teams chat at 19 percent of measured time in its apps.
- F-063–4 h
How much time do people lose switching between apps at work?
About 3 to 4 hours a week goes to getting back on track after switching apps. Logging software (just under 4 hours) and self-reports (36 minutes a day) agree within about an hour.
- F-074.6–5.7 h
How much time do people spend redoing work that already exists?
Workers report losing about 4.6 to 5.7 hours a week to duplicated work, or 10 to 14 percent of a 40-hour week. Every figure is self-reported, and two of the three come from the same publisher.