The majority of global workers are going rogue with work devices, software and applications despite being aware of the potential business risks involved, according to new research released by Snow Software. The study, which polled 3,000 professionals in the United States, Europe, and Asia Pacific, finds stark contrasts between the mindset of today’s workers and the priorities of IT leaders. This rift was especially notable in younger employees, who represent the future of the workforce. In fact, millennials are almost twice as likely to go behind IT’s back compared to older workers, with 81% admitting they have used or accessed something on their work device without permission versus just 51% of baby boomers who have done the same.
“There is a tectonic shift happening in the enterprise, driven by a rapid move to the cloud and nearly unlimited access to technology,” said Vishal Rao, President & Chief Executive Officer at Snow. “Part of what we see in this data is a philosophical evolution in what the future of work looks like. The CIO and their teams are now strategic business partners with the power to fundamentally change their organizations. That new role requires empowering a new generation of employees and enabling the business to be as effective as possible while also balancing financial, regulatory and compliance risks.”
When it comes to unsanctioned device behavior, many workers are breaking the rules in an effort to get their job done – 41% of global employees report using professional software or applications on their work device without IT’s permission. That makes it the second most common infraction, behind the 46% who access personal documents but ahead of other popular personal content like apps, music, videos, and photos. When asked about the impact of needing IT’s permission to get software or applications to do their job, 40% of workers reported that they feel watched, 32% said that it slowed them down and impacted deadlines, 27% said it was frustrating and 26% felt it negatively impacted productivity.
These findings further validate the challenges organizations face as digitally-native employees and business unit leaders – not IT gatekeepers – increasingly drive the investment and consumption of software, applications, and services. Today’s businesses and institutions need to understand what is in their technology landscape as well as how it is being used. But the real opportunity lies in using those insights to maximize value and drive better outcomes. This evolution was the driving force behind Snow’s newly expanded mission: to provide complete insight and manageability across all technology.
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