“With all the technology, how can you measure overtime worked?”
That's the answer that we received from one of our ecommerce salary survey respondents earlier this year. It's a very thought provoking response; how can any of us really measure the amount of overtime that we do? Is everyone in the industry guilty of doing hours and hours of overtime?
Technology. It helps us keep in touch with our friends and loved ones, but it also keeps us connected to the working day. Easy access to emails, mobile apps for CRM systems, for ESPs, and more – you can access pretty much everything from a variety of devices, no matter where you are.
Add to this the ever-increasing demands placed on ecommerce superstars, with tougher targets, greater competition and almost impossible shopper expectations (from same day delivery to real-time responses online), and what do you get...? Overtime.
For the majority of us, overtime is inescapable. Sometimes it’s a must-do to hit targets and keep departments running smoothly. Other times, it’s our own personal goals and curiosity that encourage us to reply to "just one more email" while on the go…
Regardless of the reason for doing it, overtime is overtime.
In this #PandaPounds 2016 exclusive, we delve deeper into the world of ecommerce, kick-starting the mini-series with a look at contracted hours and overtime hours...
Are ecommerce professionals contractually obliged to work ridiculous hours? In general, no. When it comes to the average working week, the majority of our respondents were contracted to work 37.5 hours or 40 hours per week (42% at 37.5 hours and 37% at 40 hours). Nothing too crazy about that!
Other answers to this question ranged from 8 hours to freelance hours (i.e. anything goes). For some respondents, the sky is the limit: “ I am contracted to do whatever is required regardless of hours"...
Now, let's move onto the really juicy details … how many extra hours do ecommerce superstars work per week, on average?
On page 14 of our 2016 ecommerce salary survey and insights report, you’ll find the ‘work-life balance’ section. And it's on this page that you'll see our 'overtime worked per week' graphic (also shown above). Hands up if you're not surprised to see that over 50% of ecommerce professionals do between 2 - 5 hours of overtime per week?
While this graphic highlights the results of our salary survey questionnaire, we do have to question just how accurate these responses are. I mean, most of us are guilty of sneaking in a bit of overtime here and there, aren't we? Even if we don't realise it. Remember when you quickly checked your Twitter work account notifications? Or that Saturday morning when you reviewed your latest email campaign's performance? Or that Sunday evening when you read through your emails to help you mentally prepare for yet another Monday morning meeting? Sure, these things might only take a few minutes, and they can help us feel a little more at ease, but at the end of the day, it's all overtime. And it's overtime like this that is easily forgotten.
13% of the respondents who work overtime selected ‘other’. A gigantic 44% of them told us that they work around 10 – 20 hours of overtime per week, with a few commenting that they work “too many [hours] to admit to”. And of those who work 10-20+ hours of overtime per week, only 4% are paid for it.
It’s worth noting that, of all the people who answered our 'average overtime' question, 7% stated that they don’t do any extra hours. That’s right – they don’t work any overtime. (By the way, these people weren’t included in the ‘overtime worked per week’ graphic.)
Now, if you're assuming that everyone within this segment holds a junior level position, you're very wrong. 35% are at the executive to senior executive level, 46% hold a managerial position and 19% are at a head of level or above. What's more, almost all of these respondents are contracted to work a very common 37.5 or 40 hour week.
Most ecommerce professionals work above and beyond their contracted hours, but only 5.6% of them actually get paid for it. 5.6%! Does this mean that the people who work overtime are paid incredibly well and don't need more money (!)? Are they rewarded with amazing benefits? Are they motivated to go the extra mile because they want to succeed? Or do they just really love overtime? That’s a topic for another overtime blog, ecommerce friends; watch this space!
Head on over to part 2 of our overtime series, and find out how ecommerce professionals really feel about overtime.