Companies Taking Action to Keep Employees out of the
Office
October 7, 2008 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A new survey
finds organizations are realizing the benefits of a
telecommuting workforce and are addressing the challenges in
allowing employees to do so.
The CompTIA study of 212 IT and other professionals
in a range of industries shows that the benefits of
telecommuting to organizations include improved employee
productivity (67%), cost savings (59%), access to more
qualified staff (39%), employee retention (37%), and
improved employee health (25%). However, the respondents
cited challenges also, including securing corporate
information systems (53%), limiting use of unauthorized
and unsupported devices (38%), and controlling personal
use of corporate mobile assets (33%).
In a summary of survey findings, ComTIA said
measures that organizations have taken to meet challenges
of telecommuting include upgrades in network circuits and
VPN equipment, expanded security, training, and
implementation of new virtualization technologies and
applications.
The study conducted in August and September of
professionals in a range of industries, including but not
limited to IT, government, education, insurance, and
telecommunications found 78% report that some employees
within their organizations telecommute at least
part-time, but 82% say less than 25% of employees
telecommute full-time.
Employees in IT management (41%), field technical
support (37%), and administration (35%) most commonly
telecommute, according to the study results.
Rebecca Moore
editors@plansponsor.com