87% of employees know of company-preferred vendors, but only 38% consistently buy from them

Lieberman Research Worldwide conducted a 15-minute online survey among 500 US knowledge workers employed by businesses with annual revenues of $100 mln or more. Employees feel it is OK to go outside of company policies when purchasing business services. In fact, 87% of surveyed employees said that although they are aware of company-preferred vendors, only 38% of that same group consistently used these vendors when purchasing business services. Knowledge workers are being asked to do more themselves than ever before. While the Web was meant to simplify their lives, the proliferation of options has only served to complicate it. More than 40% of employees spend more time arranging for business services now than they did five years ago, and on average, employees go to 4.2 different websites (each potentially with a unique log-in, password, and look and feel) in the process of researching prices, schedules, and other options. More than 80% employees would use one-stop shopping for both business and personal services, Rearden Commerce reported.