What is 'work about work' and how much time does it take?

The short answer

'Work about work' is the time spent coordinating work instead of doing it: chasing updates, looking for files, copying details between apps and status meetings. In Asana's 2021 research, workers around the world said it took 60% of their time. That is a global figure, not a measure of your team.

What counts as work about work

Chasing people for answers or updates.
Copying details from one system to another.
Looking for files, emails or the latest version.
Handing work over, and checking it arrived.
Meetings that only share news.

Share of workers' time spent coordinating work, worldwide, 2021. Source: Asana, 2021

Why it matters

Time spent chasing is time not spent on customers or skilled work. It also slows everything down, because work waits while people chase it. And it rarely shows up in any report, so it is easy to miss.

How to find yours

For one week, ask each person to note the time they spend chasing, copying and handing over. Ask too which tools they copy between, and which questions they answer again and again. The jobs that come up most are the ones to fix first.

How to cut it

Start with the job that comes up most, not the one that annoys you most. Write the steps down once. Remove the steps that only pass work along, and let software do the chasing, the reminders and the hand-overs. Xevrion's Automations ranks ready-made automations by the hours of coordination they remove, as an estimate from your own numbers.