What is 'Shadow Work' and Why is it Costing Trillions?
Businesses across the globe are losing US$1.7tn every year to 'invisible', time-wasting tasks that represent a drain on productivity.
That's according to the latest study from Perk, formerly known as TravelPerk, which commissioned Forrester Consulting to carry out research into 'shadow work'.
The US$1.7tn problem
Shadow work is described as the invisible, non-core tasks employees complete that fall outside the remit of their main roles.
To demonstrate how much this is costing businesses, Perk surveyed more than 700 decision-makers in finance, operations, HR and IT, as well as 8,000+ staff members working across the US, UK, Germany, France, Spain and the Netherlands.
Respondents represented companies ranging from small (50+ employees) to large enterprises (5,000+ employees) across more than 20 industries.
Employees in the UK were found to be losing approximately nine hours per week to shadow work, not to mention 12 minutes worth of focus every time they try to switch back to 'real' work.
- 76% of UK employees do shadow work during working hours
- 50% of those based in the UK cite it as the biggest driver of burnout
- 59% of UK employees report shadow work is rising year-on-year
- 52% of UK employees say shadow work reduces their job satisfaction
- 75% of UK employees surveyed would welcome AI-enabled tools to help cut shadow work
Perk's research finds employees are calling for smarter tools to cut down on shadow work – and leaders are listening. Around 71% of UK decision-makers surveyed plan to reinvest time saved through automation in growth and innovation.
"More than a decade ago, we started by removing the friction from travelling for work," explains Avi Meir, Perk CEO and Co-Founder.
"Over time, we realised those small, frustrating tasks people do outside of their core job weren't just hiding in travel; they were everywhere. To truly solve the problem, we first had to grasp its scale, and the numbers from the research surprised even me."
Perk's solution
As part of its rebrand, Perk has launched a new platform uniting travel and spend management in a seamless, AI-native experience. The firm is looking to eliminate hidden, time-wasting tasks that drain productivity – from booking trips and filing expenses to coding invoices and chasing approvals.
Avi asks: "How can a 1,000 person company afford to lose around 7,000 hours to shadow work every week? Perk gives companies the fuel they need to make work simpler and give people their time back."
Perk's AI-native module automates the tasks that slow teams down, from expenses and invoicing to card payments. With Perk Pay, companies can issue physical cards that simplify spending while keeping every transaction under company control. It centralises oversight of company spending, reduces fraud risk and automates expense reconciliation.
Perk's intelligent platform now automates two-thirds (67%) of the most frustrating non-core work, including booking travel for work, filing expenses, managing invoices and organising team events. Unlike fragmented solutions, Perk delivers a single, global platform experience that enables companies to set the rules once and have them applied everywhere.
Reflecting its global scale and ambition, Perk is set to establish dual headquarters in London and Boston to support its next phase of growth. With two strategic acquisitions in less than a year, a Series E financing fuelling innovation, significant AI investment, plus a footprint of more than 1,800 employees across 12 global offices, the company is entering a new phase of accelerated growth.
