Companies are losing an annual average of 24 days of extra working hours by not allowing employees to work from home, according to the latest research by videoconferencing service provider UCi2i.
The claim, based on a poll of 1,000 office employees in the UK, highlights the benefits of having a flexible working environment and the ‘overtime’ they put in as a result.
UCi2i has found that as many as 94 percent of UK office workers work better when they work from home despite stating they were not equipped with the appropriate technology to communicate with fellow colleagues (85 percent).
When asked why working from home is so successful, reasons that were given included: peace and quiet for productivity (26 percent), spending the time they would be travelling to the office, working (18 percent) and allowing the ideal work/life balance (13 percent).
The study also highlights a series of ‘over-workers’, who added more to their companies by working more than five hours more per week. These individuals were most commonly from industries such as finance (35.71 percent), manufacturing (36 percent) professional services (35 percent) and travel and transport (40 percent).
But perhaps unsurprisingly, the study also finds that colleagues back in the office struggle with the lack of transparency with one in believing those who do work from home ‘cheat the system’.
Overall, 84 percent of those surveyed said they were uncomfortable with their colleagues not working alongside them, highlighting that better forms of communication between working locations is vital for a productive and happy workforce.
The research coincides with the launch of a new personal video collaboration tool from UCi2i that’s been designed with non-technical users in mind, ‘V-Book’. The platform allows instant face-to-face communication and collaboration with colleagues and customers at the click of a button regardless of location or the device they are using.
Michael Grant, group managing director of UCi2i, comments: “These results highlight the need for companies, across all sectors, to seriously consider investing in videoconferencing that support flexible working and allow instant face-to-face communication among colleagues, customers and partners at any time, wherever they are.
“Investing in easy to use software and encouraging employees to work from home can significantly improve businesses productivity and profit.”
