SolarWinds Application Performance End User Survey (Australia)

Application Performance End User Survey
Australia Findings
Conducted by Redshift Research
July 2014
© 2014 SOLARWINDS WORLDWIDE, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Executive Summary
» Email and Office applications are used daily by 94% and 93% of respondants respectively, and both top the list in being most critical when it comes to doing their job. File sharing
applications are also used daily by most respondents (54%).
» 94% of employees said application performance and availability affect their ability to do their job, with over half (53%) reporting that it is absolutely critical. For 65% it has become
more important over the past 5 years due to an increase in the time spent using applications, coupled with an increase in their workload and more demanding deadlines.
» 70% of respondents have, at one time or another, experienced an issue with an application that was critical to doing their job
» 81 percent of respondents said they contacted their IT department in the past year due to an application performance or availability issue, with one-third having done so six times
or more. .
» Of those who experienced an issue critical to doing their job, 40% are told that the problem is already being worked at least half of the time, while 55% are told less than half the
time that the problem is already being worked on.
» 68% of employees expect IT to solve an application performance or availability issue in sixty minutes or less, yet only one-third of users said IT could meet this demand.
» 44% will blame the application itself for the performance or availability issue, and 73% will try to resolve the issue themselves or ask a coworker, only contacting the IT department
if unable to resolve the issue.
» 74% of total respondents will wait only up to one hour before contacting IT to report a problem. While 47% claim that the time they wait to contact IT has remained unchanged over
the past 5 years, 24% did say that time has decreased.
» Among total respondents, 35% do not know the financial implication caused by slow or unavailable applications.
» The vast majority of respondents will not wait more than one business day for a doctor’s diagnosis (where the fastest response is desired), for a shipping notification for an online
purchase or an email response. When it comes to waiting for a news website or online video to load, the majority (68% and 64%, respectively) would wait a maximum of 20 seconds
before moving on.
2© 2014 SOLARWINDS WORLDWIDE, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Software or Applications Used on a Daily Basis
Base: 201 Total
16%
22%
23%
33%
36%
39%
40%
54%
93%
94%
Analytics
Social Media
CRM
Enterprise Resource Planning
Proprietary/Custom
Video or Web-based Conferencing
Collaboration
File Sharing
Office
Email
Q4. On a daily basis, which of the following software or
applications do you use at work? (Please select all that apply

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Rating of Applications: Most Critical (10) to Least Critical (1) for Job Performance
Mean Scores
Base: 201 Total
4.35
4.62
4.75
5.14
5.27
5.58
5.93
6.10
7.90
7.94
Social Media
Analytics
CRM
Enterprise Resource Planning
Video or Web-based Conferencing
Collaboration
File Sharing
Proprietary/Custom
Office
Email
Q5.The following are examples of various applications you might use at work.
Please rank each application using a scale from 1-10, with 10 being the most critical
to doing your job and 1 being the least critical.

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
How Application Performance & Availability Affects Job
Critical to
accomplishing
my job
53%
A lack of it
makes job
more difficult
but not
impossible
41%
Does not
affect my job
6%
Base: 201 Total
Q6. How does application performance and availability (for example,
applications running slowly, applications being unavailable, connectivity
problems, etc.) affect your ability to do your job?

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Over Past 5 Years, how Application Performance &
Availability Changed Ability to Perform Job
Has become
more
important to
doing my job
65%
Has become
less
important
15%
Has not
changed my
ability to do
my job
20%
Base: 201 Total
Q7. Over the past 5 years, how has application performance and
availability’s impact on your ability to do your job changed?

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Reasons why Application Performance & Delivery More Important in Past 5 Years
Base: More Important: : 129
2%
33%
39%
47%
50%
64%
Other
Financial and/or business consequences
related to my work have increased
I have more flexibility on where and/or when
I perform my job functions, so I am expected
to be available anytime, anywhere
My workload has increased
I am expected to work faster/complete
deadlines sooner
The amount of time I spend using applications
to complete my job has increased overall
Q8. Why has application performance and availability become more
important in doing your job? (Please check all that apply)

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Reasons why Application Performance & Delivery Less Important in Past 5 Years
Base: More Important: 29- caution small base size
0%
14%
24%
31%
41%
The amount of time I spend using applications
to complete my job has increased overall
I spend less time using applications to
complete my job overall
I now have more application options for doing
my job
We have adjusted business processes to
minimize the impact
I have more flexibility on where and/or when I
perform my job functions, so I can adjust when
there are application performance and
availability problems
Q9. Why has application performance and availability become less
important in doing your job? (Please check all that apply)

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Number of Times Contacted IT Dept. in Past Year due to
Application Performance and Availability Issues
None
10%
1 to 5
47%
6 to 10
24%
11 to 15
5%
More than 15
9%
Base: 201 Total
Q10. How many times have you contacted your organization’s IT department in the
past year due to application performance and availability issues?
Up to 10 Times: 71%
Balance do not have an IT department (5%)

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Whether Ever Experienced Application Performance or
Availability Issue Critical to Doing Job
Yes
70%
No
30%
Base: 201 Total
Q11. Have you ever experienced a performance or availability issue related
to one or more of the applications most critical to doing your job?

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Percent of Time Problem already Reported to IT Dept.
and being Worked on
100-75%
19%
75-50%
21%
50-25%
29%
25% or less
26%
Base: Experienced at least one application
or performance issue critical to job: 140
Q12. On average, when you contact your organization’s IT department about a performance
or availability issue related to the applications most critical to doing your job, what
percentage of the time are you told they are already aware of the problem and/or working
to resolve it?
50% or less of the time: 55%
50% to 100% of the time: 40%
Balance do not have an IT department (5%)

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Longest Waiting Time Experienced for Problem Resolution
Base: Experienced at least one application or
performance issue critical to job: 140
4%
15%
10%
8%
14%
14%
12%
13%
10%
Immediately
Half hour or less
More than a half an hour, less than an
hour
An hour
More than an hour
Several hours
One business day
Several business days
More than a week
Q13. What’s the longest you’ve had to wait for a performance and availability
issue related to an application critical to performing your job to be resolved?
One Business day to more than
one week: 35%
More than one hour but within
the same business day: 28%
One hour or less: 37%

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
First to Blame for Problem
4%
9%
9%
15%
19%
44%
Other
User error
Application vendor
Internet service provider
IT department
The application itself
Q14. When you encounter an application performance or availability issue,
which of the following do you typically first assume is to blame?

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Satisfaction Level with IT Dept. Response Time with
Problem Resolution
Very satisfied
21%
Somewhat
satisfied
58%
Somewhat
dissatisfied
15%
Q15. How satisfied are you with your IT department’s response time in
resolving application performance and availability issues
Very Dissatisfied
1%
Total Satisfied: 79%
Balance do not have IT Dept. (5%)

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Typical Course of Action when Experience Application Problem
1%
2%
24%
73%
Ignore issue hoping it will resolve
itself or someone else will report it
to the IT department
Other
Contact IT department immediately
Try to resolve issue myself or ask a
coworker, and contact IT department
only if I’m unable to resolve the issue
Q16. When you encounter an application performance or availability issue,
what is your typical course of action?

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Estimated Cost for Company caused by Slow or Unavailable
Applications Critical to Job
Base: 201 Total
16%
21%
18%
7%
3%
35%
Hundreds of dollars of less
Thousands of dollars
Tens of thousands of dollars
Hundreds of thousands of dollars
Millions of dollars
I don’t know
Q17.If you were to equate financial loss based on lost productivity or revenue to
one or more of the most critical applications to doing your job being regularly slow
or unavailable, how much would it cost your company per year?

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Length of Time Willing to Wait to Contact IT Dept. to Report Problem
Base: 201 Total
24%
33%
11%
6%
10%
3%
2%
0%
0%
Immediately
Half hour or less
More than a half an hour, less than an
hour
An hour
More than an hour
Several hours
One business day
More than a week
Q18. For the applications most critical to doing your job, how long would you typically be willing to wait
to contact your organization’s IT department when you encounter an application performance or
availability problem?
one week: 2%
Balance do not have IT Dept. (5%)

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Change in Past 5 Years in Time Willing to Wait to
Contact IT Dept.
Decreased
significantly
7%
Decreased
somewhat
17%
Remained
unchanged
47%
Increased
somewhat
18%
Base: 201 Total
Q19. Over the past 5 years, has the amount of time you would be willing to wait before contacting your
organization’s IT department about a performance or availability issue related to the applications most critical
to doing your job…..
Increased significantly
4%
Balance do not have IT Dept. (5%), and
don’t know or did not answer (2%)
Decreased: 24%

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Length of Time Expected to Wait for Problem Resolution
Base: 201 Total
12%
25%
14%
17%
12%
5%
4%
1%
0%
Immediately
Half hour or less
More than a half an hour, less than an hour
An hour
More than an hour
Several hours
One business day
More than a week
Q20. For the applications most critical to doing your job, how long would you typically expect
it to take for your organization’s IT department to resolve a performance or availability
problem related to the applications most critical to doing your job?
one week: 5%

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Change in Past 5 Years in Time Willing to Wait for
Problem Resolution
Decreased
significantly
8%
Decreased
somewhat
19%
Remained
unchanged
47%
Increased
somewhat
15%
Increased significantly
3%
Base: 201 Total
Q21. Over the past 5 years, has the amount of time you would be willing to wait for your organization’s IT
department to resolve a performance or availability problem related to the applications most critical to
doing your job….
Decreased: 27%

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Length of Time Willing to Wait for….
58%
26%
16%
42% 42%
16%
34%
47%
19%
One hour or less Within the same business day More than one business day
Doctor's Diagnosis
Shipping Notification for Online Purchase
Response to Email Message
Q22. How long would you be willing to wait for a doctor’s diagnosis?
Q23. How long would you be willing to wait for notification that an item you purchased online has shipped?
Q24. How long would you be willing to wait for someone to respond to an email message before following up or
assuming they won’t answer?Base: 201 Total

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Length of Time Willing to Wait for….
30%
38%
20%
12%
20%
44%
22%
14%
1-10 seconds 11-20 seconds 21-30 seconds More than 30 seconds
News Website to Load Before Moving to Alternate Site
Online Video to Load before Moving On
Q25. How long would you be willing to wait for a news website to load before moving on to an alternative site?
Q26. How would you be willing to wait for an online video to load and play before moving on?Base: 201 Total
20 seconds or less: 68%
20 seconds or less: 64%

Appendix

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Examples Provided to Respondents for Software or Applications
(shortened for reporting purposes)
» Email applications (for example, Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Notes, etc.)
» Video or Web-based conferencing applications (for example, Adobe Connect/Defense Connect
Online, Cisco WebEx, Citrix, Skype, etc.)
» Office applications (for example, Microsoft Word, Apple Keynote, Google Sheets)
» File sharing applications (for example, Internal/proprietary server or storage, SharePoint, Dropbox,
Google Drive, etc.)
» Social media applications (for example, HootSuite, Tweetdeck, SocialOomph, etc.)
» Collaboration applications (for example, Microsoft Lync, Confluence, Microsoft Sharepoint, Google
Docs, etc.)
» Analytics applications (for example, SAS, Tableau, SiSense, etc.)
» Enterprise resource planning applications (for example, SAP, PeopleSoft, etc.)
» CRM applications (Salesforce Sales Cloud, NetSuite CRM, Microsoft Dynamics, etc.)
» Proprietary/custom business applications (for example, inventory, accounting and logistics
applications, etc.)

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Demographics/Corpographics
Male
54%
Female
46%
Base: 201 Total
4%
28%
32%
22%
14%
18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+
19%
18%
12%
12%
20%
3%
1%
2%
2%
9%
Administrative/Assistant
Clerical
Supervisor
Project Manager
Manager
Director
Managing Director
Vice President/Senior VP/Executive VP
Owner or Partner
Other
Position

AUSTRALIA RESULTS
Demographics/Corpographics
Base: 201 Total
15%
5%
2%
9%
18%
5%
4%
20%
1%
19%
Accounting/Finance
Communications
Creative
Engineering
IT
Law/Public Affairs
Marketing/Sales
Operations
Procurement
Other
Dept./Function
9%
3%
7% 6% 6% 6%
4% 3% 3% 3% 3%
0% 1% 0%
2%
6%
30%
4%
No. Employees
Yes
41%
No
58%
It's
complic
ated
1%
Public sector

Methodology
» Redshift Research conducted this study on behalf of Text 100 and Solarwinds.
» The survey was carried out in accordance with the Market Research Society’s code of conduct, which guarantees anonymity
to all respondents, and was designed to measure the attitudes of Small Businesses regarding Technology.
» Research was conducted in June, 2014 using an email invitation and an online survey.
» The survey was conducted among 1,816 respondents 18 years of age or older were currently employed in an office
environment full time. All were required to use at least one type of computer software application to qualify (including
email). No restrictions were placed on the size or type of company where the respondent worked. The study was conducted
in the following countries: Australia (n=201), Brazil (n=207), Denmark (n=200), Germany (n=300), Singapore (n=202), US
(n=403), and the UK (n=303). In Brazil and Germany, the respondents answered the survey in-language.
» The data were set to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the total populations aged 18 and older. Results of any
sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of
interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a
survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than between 4.88 and 6.91 percentage points from the result that would
be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.
» Sample was selected from the Crowdology panel. Crowdology™ is an online panel owned and operated by Redshift Research.
The Crowdology™ panel is balanced across regional, age and gender demographic factors, and is nationally representative of
the US population. Each respondent completes 120 profiling questions before being accepted to join our panel. Panel Quality
Management is carried out frequently to ensure reliable surveys.

The SOLARWINDS and SOLARWINDS & Design marks are the exclusive
property of SolarWinds Worldwide, LLC, are registered with the U.S.
Patent and Trademark Office, and may be registered or pending
registration in other countries. All other SolarWinds trademarks, service
marks, and logos may be common law marks, registered or pending
registration in the United States or in other countries. All other
trademarks mentioned herein are used for identification purposes only
and may be or are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective
companies.

SolarWinds Application Performance End User Survey (Australia)

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