Board directors clog up the helpdesk

Board directors take up one quarter of IT helpdesk time, despite making up only five per cent of the workforce - and all because they can't work their mobile devices.

Furthermore, company chiefs have been accused of throwing their weight around to get priority over more pressing IT problems, according to research from ICM.

Lee Chadwick, a spokesman for software company Touchpaper, which commissioned the research, said: "Board level people will suck it and see. They believe if they don't know how something works, they'll be able to use their weight in the organisation to get it fixed.

"I've never met a helpdesk manager that doesn't give preferential treatment to directors. It's good for promotion," he added.

Chadwick recommended training for mobile devices as a cure to the helpdesk overload.

He said the initial price of showing a boss how to use his stylus may cost up to £1,500, plus ongoing yearly costs of up to £1,000.