Despite two-thirds of workers saying flexible working increases their productivity, it is being hindered by the lack of training they have received regarding new technologies.
Productivity experts, 99&One have found that 66 per cent of employees say flexible working has increased their productivity but as 67 per cent of workers have yet to be trained on instant messaging, 61 per cent on shared documents, 48 per cent on cloud-based collaborations tools, 40 per cent on video conferencing and 36 per cent on audio conferencing, it is reducing the productivity brought with flexible working.
The research also found that 17 per cent of those who work remotely, still experience connectivity issues. Less than half (43 per cent) of employees have received additional training or support on technologies to work more flexibly.
Those who have received training on flexible working technologies are five times happier at work than those who have not (56 per cent vs 11 per cent). Trained flexible workers are also as twice as likely to get more work done (45 per cent vs 18 per cent).
Steve Haworth, CEO of TeleWare said:
Digital transformation is key to encouraging productivity, engagement and collaboration. However, many companies have still not got to grips with their IT investment. Just 1 per cent of UK businesses have productivity above 1 per cent. Optimised technology could improve productivity, profitability and employee engagement.
Setting employees up with the right tools to carry out their role is not enough. They need to feel confident using them. Companies should be prepared to deliver and embed technology change in a people-first way. Helping everyone in the organisation to fully embrace change.
This research was carried out by asking the opinions of 2,016 UK flexible workers.
Darius is the editor of HRreview. He has previously worked as a finance reporter for the Daily Express. He studied his journalism masters at Press Association Training and graduated from the University of York with a degree in History.
