A study conducted by Altron Digital Business (ADB) found that a staggering 88% of South African employees agree that technology enables them to do their best work.
ADB concluded the benchmark study, focusing on how employees experience technology across eight major institutions in the financial services industry.
The Employee Technology Experience Index (TEXI) measured employee sentiment across eight core technology categories using a standardised scoring methodology.
Widening gap
The findings reveal the scale of the cost: gaps in workplace technology cost FSI organisations up to R30m per 1,000 employees each year.
Published today by ADB, part of the JSE-listed Altron Group, these findings are among several in the first South African FSI Employee Technology Experience Index (TEXI).
The study provides business and technology leaders with a data-driven view of how technology directly influences workforce outcomes such as employee productivity, job satisfaction, retention, and ultimately customer experience and organisational performance.
“For the first time, South African banks and insurers have access to local, evidence-based data that connects technology investment directly to workforce and business outcomes.
“This shifts the conversation from IT support metrics to strategic performance indicators that belong in the boardroom,” says ADB MD Craig Stewart.
Most organisations measure technology in operational terms: device fleet age, infrastructure stability, ticket resolution rates, and system uptime.
These metrics describe what IT does.
They do not describe what it feels like to work with the technology IT teams deliver, and they do not connect technology performance to the outcomes that boards care about: talent retention, customer experience, and competitive positioning.
Tech opportunity
Commissioned by ADB and undertaken by Lightspeed, part of the Kantar Group, the research offers distinctive insights into challenges and opportunities for South Africa’s leading financial services institutions as they modernise their technology foundations to better support employees and customers.
“Technology is no longer a back-office enabler; it is a defining factor in how employees perform, how customers are served, and how organisations compete.
“The Employee Technology Experience Index provides South African CIOs, CEOs, CTOs and HR leaders with a clear, evidence-based view of where technology investments are driving value and where they are creating risk,” says Stewart.
Stewart adds, “Our aim is to support more informed, strategic decision-making that strengthens both employee experience and business performance.”
Based on input from 385 employees across eight major banking and insurance institutions, the TEXI study reveals a strong correlation between technology performance and employee experience outcomes, including eNPS, job satisfaction, and retention.
Key findings from the study:
- 88% of employees agree that technology enables their best work.
- A +105-point Employee Net Promoter Score gap exists between employees with positive and those with poor technology experiences – an indication of how likely they are to promote the organisation as an employer.
- 47% report that technology friction has negatively impacted customer or colleague interactions.
- Tech-related disruption is estimated to cost between R3.2m and R30m per 1,000 employees each year.
Visibility gap
A critical finding is the “visibility gap” emerging within organisations.
“More than 28% of employees have stopped reporting IT issues entirely, while over half resort to personal devices or unauthorised tools to complete their work – this is a significant governance and information security risk that many boards may not yet have visibility of,” says Stewart.
The study reinforces that technology experience is now a critical differentiator in South Africa’s financial services industry.
It shapes not only employee productivity but also talent retention, customer satisfaction, and institutional competitiveness.
“The cost of poor technology experience on employees is no longer theoretical.
“We can now put a Rand value on it – and that changes everything,” says Stewart in conclusion.
