According to a recent study conducted by Slack, a Salesforce company, small business owners are losing an average of 96 minutes of productivity daily, which amounts to three weeks of lost time per year. The study also found that technology helps save them time and effort. In particular, millennials report being more likely to use technology to help optimize their time — even more so than Gen Z.

Why it matters: At the beginning of 2024, 40% of small businesses considered this a make or break year. The businesses, which generate roughly 44% of U.S. GDP, must squeeze every ounce of productivity from their days in order to survive.

By the numbers:

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Small business owners are wasting precious time — and siloed technology is one reason why

• Small business owners list non-work-related distractions (57%), procrastination (47%), and the seemingly endless wait for status updates from multiple tools and stakeholders (28%) as their top time-wasters.
• Another reported productivity killer: context switching between apps and tools (17%). The average small business owner surveyed juggles four different digital tools daily — and nearly a third of them use five or more digital tools.  
• Three in 10 respondents waste time searching for information in the wrong places, while 29% find themselves repeating messages across platforms.
• These results may indicate why a significant share (59%) of small business owners introduced new technology to their operations this year.
  • Key ways they report using this technology include aiming to simplify tasks (62%), save time (59%), and improve their products or services (51%).

From Gen Z to baby boomers, small business owners in every age group seek ways to better manage their time

• 47% of Gen Z respondents said they’re “excellent” at time management, compared to just 33% of millennials, 25% of Gen X’ers, and 24% of baby boomers.
• Respondents in every age group said that the ability to increase their focus would help them address wasted time and boost productivity.
• Millennials reported that technology is their second-most influential strategy for driving productivity.
• Gen Z, Gen X, and baby boomer respondents reported that setting boundaries and saying “no” when they’re unable to take on more work are the second and third most important strategies for being more productive.

Salesforce perspective: “It’s encouraging to see small business owners — no matter their age — embracing technology to drive productivity,” said Jaime DeLanghe, Vice President, Product Management at Slack. “For small businesses competing with limited resources, technology is crucial. It enhances productivity, augments every employee with AI, and helps build deeper customer relationships while driving growth.

It’s encouraging to see small business owners — no matter their age — embracing technology to drive productivity.

Jaime DeLanghe, Vice President, Product Management at Slack.

About Slack: Slack, a Salesforce company, is the AI-powered work operating system that centralizes conversations and collaboration, makes it easy to automate business processes, and delivers trusted generative AI that augments every employee to help them be more productive and drive real outcomes. Teams that use Slack are 49% more productive and more than 90% of teams feel more connected using Slack. 

More information: 

• Download and share these small business insights
• Learn more about Slack for small business

Research methodology:

This random double-opt-in survey of 2,000 U.S. small business owners (businesses with 2,000 or fewer employees), split evenly by generation, was commissioned by Slack and administered and conducted online by Talker Research between June 28 and July 3, 2024.