Efficiency Obsession Wastes Employees' Time as Company Seeks Unrealistic Gains

A company's push for efficiency has reached absurd levels after switching to Google Workspace and Gemini from Microsoft. Employees are now wasting up to 15 hours a week building slides to prove how much more efficient their work has become.

The monthly Google and Gemini huddles, biweekly departmental meetings, and weekly team discussions were initially meant to encourage employees to explore new software and share shortcuts that improve their work. However, they have now become opportunities for frustrated workers to ask questions, as the enthusiasm for finding improvements has worn off.

Management still expects employees to identify fresh efficiencies every week, regardless of whether any remain. This creates an incentive to manufacture improvements rather than report meaningful results.