The beginning of the year is supposed to be a time to reset and refocus. Yet for many employees across Europe, returning to work over the last month won’t have feel like a fresh start. Instead, it has felt like stepping straight back into the same day-to-day drag. Crowded inboxes, duplicated processes and manual admin tasks have quickly taken over, leaving less time for the work that actually matters.
Our recent research shows just how severe the burden has become. Employees are losing an average of 15 hours every week to routine administrative tasks outside of their core role – the equivalent of almost two full working days. More than a quarter (26%) say they spend most of their working day on admin, and only 43% believe they spend most of their time on value-driving work. It’s clear that admin overload is no longer simply an operational frustration. It’s a workplace issue leaders cannot afford to dismiss if they want their organisations to stay productive, compliant and competitive.
The human impact of routine admin
Employee engagement is already under intense pressure across Europe. Just 13% of workers report feeling engaged at work, with a relentless admin load only accelerating that decline. Most of the time, this frustration doesn’t usually come from one “big” admin task. It comes from the accumulation of smaller ones, such as re-entering the same data across multiple systems, manually updating reports, tracking down approvals or trying to find the right document in a sea of folders and shared drives.
These activities may seem minor on their own, but together they drain time and energy. Moreover, they send a damaging message. When employees spend large chunks of their day ticking boxes, it can feel like their true skills and talent are being sidelined.
And this is reflected in what employees believe reducing admin would unlock, from greater enjoyment of work through more creative tasks (29%) to being able to deliver more value (27%), to making stronger strategic decisions, solving more customer or client issues and delivering projects faster (21%).
The challenge is also compounded by a growing perception gap between leaders and employees. While decision makers often recognise that admin is a problem, a quarter of employees believe leaders underestimate how much time is lost to it. Even more concerning is that only 18% feel their employer genuinely cares about reducing their admin burden.
When routine tasks become a risk issue
Aside from morale and productivity issues, admin overload also exposes organisations to operational and compliance risks. Manual, document-heavy workflows increase the likelihood of errors, outdated information and inconsistent handling, all of which can create vulnerabilities that build quietly in the background.
Over the last five years alone, 62% of decision makers say their organisation has experienced or narrowly avoided a data or compliance breach due to mismanaged or missing documents. These risks often stay hidden until a near-miss or serious incident forces them into focus. For something so easily addressable, the consequences can be severe, including financial penalties and long-lasting reputational damage.
Leaders are aware but don’t act
Part of the challenge is that many leaders believe progress is already being made. While 44% of decision makers identify automation as the technology that would have the biggest impact on growth and productivity, 61% say new tools and systems have already simplified workflows in their organisation.
But the lived experience of employees tells a different story. Too often, businesses introduce new technology without fixing the process around it, or they automate in silos rather than improving workflows end-to-end. The result can be more tools alongside the same admin load.
Turning intent into action
For a more productive and resilient 2026, organisations need to start treating admin as a measurable barrier to performance.
That begins with investigating where time is slipping away and which tasks add the least value. From there, processes need to be simplified and standardised before being automated, especially where documents, approvals and information flows regularly cause friction.
When it’s done properly and with employees on side, automation takes the weight of repetitive manual work and gives back crucial time for more creative, strategic work that drives growth and satisfaction. And by embedding consistency, it can strengthen governance, improve accuracy and reduce compliance exposure.
The admin burden keeps resurfacing because the fundamentals haven’t changed. But leaders have an opportunity to change that. This year, they need to treat admin overload as the solvable issue it is.
Jason Spry
Jason Spry is Process Automation Commercial Director at Ricoh Europe.
