Most workers across the globe no longer believe they need to be
in the office to be productive, according to a recent study.
According to a survey by Cisco Systems, the same percentage of
workers would choose jobs that were lower-paying but had leniency
in accessing information outside of the office over higher salaried
jobs that lacked such flexibility.
The study, which involved surveys of 2,600 workers and IT
professionals in 13 countries, said that half of the respondents
(45 percent) admitted working between two to three extra hours a
day, and a quarter were putting in four hours or more. "The extra
hours do not translate to always-on, on-demand employees," Cisco
said. "They simply want the flexibility to manage their work-life
balance throughout their waking hours."
While employees strongly indicated that flexibility and mobility
are key elements of job satisfaction, the IT professionals surveyed
said they are not certain they are ready to grant workers such
broad access. Almost half of the IT respondents (45 percent) said
they are not prepared, policy- and technology-wise, to support a
more mobile workforce. Security was the top concern.
While the IT respondents felt security (57 percent), budget (34
percent), and staff expertise (17 percent) were the biggest
barriers to enabling a more distributed workforce, employees often
felt IT and corporate policies were the obstacles.
According to the survey, concerns about mobile device security
are well-founded. About one in five (19 percent) employees globally
said they have noticed strangers looking at their computer screens
in public, while an additional 19 percent admitted they never think
to check their surroundings.
Nearly one in five (17 percent) employees admitted leaving
devices unattended in public. Almost three of every five employees
globally (58 percent) admitted they have allowed nonemployees to
use their corporate devices unsupervised.
One of four IT respondents (26 percent) said one-fourth of the
devices issued to employees in the past 12 months had already been
lost or stolen.
"Simply put, this report serves as a call-to-action for IT
organizations," said Dave Evans, futurist and chief technologist
for Cisco's Internet Business Solutions Group. "Work is not a place
anymore. It's a lifestyle, and the IT profession's role is only
going to get more strategic as it tries to help businesses stay
agile and increase productivity."