- 31.7% of employees surveyed admit to scrolling on their phones during meetings
- Distracted habits are taking over the workplace, with potentially devastating consequences for long-term job prospects.
- Managers are 4 times more likely to be late to a meeting than a junior employee
Scrolling on your phone is now considered preferable to engaging in conversations in meetings, with almost a third (31.7%) of employees admitting they look at their phone instead of the daily PowerPoint, according to new research.
Digital distractions in the workplace are costing employees of all ages opportunities to advance, while Gen Z employees struggle with time management. Results from a Careerminds UK survey of 600 UK employees highlight meetings, emails and notifications that distract from the focused task, with 37.2% of respondents completing or attending to personal tasks while at work.
Time management challenges are impacting employees across the workplace, with Generation Z particularly notable for having difficulty organizing and participating.
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“Habits that damage your career”
The survey found chronic laziness, ignored messages, and scrolling off the phone in meetings among bad habits, and 44.2% of respondents admitted falling into 3 or more “career-damaging habits” each month.
Meanwhile, the threat of “silent habits” can potentially have the biggest impact on any chance of advancement with your current employer.
If you’re prone to avoidant behaviors, such as staying silent in meetings (31%), venting about a line manager to a colleague (19.2%), or saying yes to a task you can’t complete (5.7%), then you also need to look for ways to break the habits that are holding you back.
“None of these behaviors are likely to derail a career on their own, but together they influence how confident, committed and ready for greater responsibility you appear to people making decisions about promotions and pay rises,” said Amanda Augustine, Certified Career Counselor (CPCC) and resident careers expert at Careerminds UK.
“The encouraging news is that these are not fixed personality traits; rather, they are everyday habits that can be identified, addressed, and improved with consistent effort.”
Generation Z: struggling with time management
Perhaps the most worrying data to emerge from the survey, however, involves Generation Z. Careerminds UK found that more than a quarter (26.7%) of employees in the 18-29 age group were late to meetings in the previous month, much higher than the 3.3% rate in the over-55 group. Additionally, the younger cohort is more likely to “get sick” (26.7% versus 12.2%) from additional time off.
However, there may be an opportunity for managers to lead by example and show up to meetings on time: 38.0% more likely to be late to meetings, versus 9.2% for entry-level employees.
Tips from Careerminds UK include being more organized at work, setting aside time to deal with messages, being present, engaged and communicative, and admitting deadline challenges before they become a problem.
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