We use mobile phone apps to do just about everything - to entertain ourselves, to share pics, to keep up with the news. The smartphone has become that one gadget we now struggle to cope without.

A survey commissioned by webexpenses suggests that more than a third of phone users (36 percent) would rather give up alcohol for a year than lose their mobile apps - and 16 percent would forgo sex!

We use them because they’re fun, they’re adaptable and they make our lives that little bit easier.

And yet…

The one area where the benefits of mobile have yet to be truly maximised is in the business world. While attitudes are changing, many companies struggle to accept mobile working.

It’s an attitude which places organisations at risk of being left behind. Mobile working methods are helping to create a new generation of organisation - happier, smarter and more competitive than ever before.

So why aren’t more businesses making use of work-based apps?

This is what webexpenses set out to explore. We wanted to look behind the marketing ‘buzz’; to talk to mobile users themselves about how apps fit into their working lives.

We set out to discover:

• Who uses apps at work?
• How they are using them?
• The benefits they bring

Our research, carried out by censuswide, involved interviews with more than 2,000 appusing employees in business throughout the UK.

Who uses work apps?

All of the 2,005 people selected for our research were smartphone owners and app users. While the majority used their devices at work, there were still 43 percent not using their phone for any work purposes.

Do you use apps at work?

Male employees were more likely to be using apps at work and there is a clear generation gap evident between younger and older employees. The younger a smartphone user, the more likely they were to be using an app at work.

Age range of app users at work

It’s perhaps no great surprise to see younger people significantly more likely to use apps at work. They are part of a generation which has grown up with mobile technology, who use it naturally and effortlessly.

It highlights the significant challenges faced by organisations failing to adapt to the needs of this new generation of tech-savvy employee. This was evident in the research findings with one-in-five (19 percent) of those not using apps at work citing employer attitudes.

Reasons for apps not being used at work

Of those who did use apps in the workplace, 28 percent said they tended to feel selfconscious, worried that others would perceive them as not working. It suggests the important role workplace culture has on the use of mobile technology.

How we use apps

The majority of smartphone owners say they use apps in the workplace - but what are they using them for?

Despite the huge number of apps available - Google Play had more than 1.3 million listed in 2014 - the research shows that most people use only a small core set of functions for work purposes.

A smartphone user will typically have between 10 to 20 apps loaded but will be using just a handful on a daily basis.

Of those core apps, among the most commonly used were task management (46 percent), business networking (26 percent) and expenses management (24 percent).

A common feature of the most popular work apps is their use of cloud technology. This enables employees to access powerful applications and work data from wherever they have an online connection.

It’s this ability which has driven the rise of mobile working. Tasks that once required employees to be sat behind a desk in an office can now be carried out remotely.

It has unlocked a more flexible and adaptable way for companies to do business and reduced the need to maintain costly internal IT networks.

Some of the other popular uses identified in the survey included language translation, job search software and currency conversion apps.

What are the benefits

The survey looked at why employees use apps at work. What is it that they gain from using smartphones and how does this translate into practical benefits for employers?

Time Saving

The majority of employees (62 percent) said they used apps at work because they provide a fast and efficient way of getting tasks done.

One-in-three users estimated that they would save up to an hour each week on work tasks via the use of an app. Ten percent said the time saving could be as much as three to four hours a week.

Time saved through mobile phone apps

The specific areas where savings were made included the ability to work on the go, reduced admin time and a more efficient and streamlined process for managing business expenses.

These time savings also translated into financial savings. Respondents were asked to estimate how much using work apps saved their company each year. An estimate of between £100 to £500 was given by 21 percent of employees.

When these savings are multiplied by the number of employees using work apps, the efficiency savings are considerable. Where use of apps is optional for employees, it makes business sense to encourage and promote its uptake.

Ease of use

The second most popular reason employees said for using apps at work was because of their ease of use, given by 59 percent of respondents.

One of the areas that mobile technology has helped to revolutionise is the way we interact with our devices. The lessons learnt from consumer apps have been translated into business applications.

Together with touchscreen technology, it enables even the most complex of work tasks to be completed via a few finger swipes.

Moving to mobile

There are always new technologies emerging with ambitious claims to be a ‘game changer’ for the business world. So it’s often wise for organisations to take a cautious approach – not to throw IT resources at something which may soon flounder.

But the results of the webexpenses survey show that mobile working is having a very real and significant impact. Companies throughout the UK are experiencing the practical benefits with employees able to work faster and smarter – saving time and money.

It has created a new way of working which is closely attuned to the way we live our lives; with technology seamlessly integrated into everything we do. The benefits go beyond the efficiency savings; it’s fundamentally changing the way we do business.

Challenge to change

As we look ahead, the companies with a competitive advantage will be those best able to adapt to a new generation of mobile worker. To harness their fluency and ability to use digital technology and to apply it to business productivity.

Conversely, the greatest challenges are likely to be faced by those companies whose working practices have been moulded by a pre-digital world. A reliance on old manual and paper-based processes will become an increasing burden for businesses.

As the demographic balance of the UK workforce moves towards the digital generation - the time to change is now.