Companies are failing to invest in systems to enable their staff to
work effectively away from the office, research by Citrix has
claimed.
In a survey of 180 staff, most worked more than 20 hours a week
outside the office, and 19% worked away from their desk for more
than 20 hours a week.
But 62% said their company had no policy on working from home, and
85% said their employer made no attempt to monitor work done
outside the office.
Eighty-six per cent of employees carried some form of mobile
device, and 32% had a laptop, but only 7% had full remote access to
office systems, and just 12% had use of a virtual private
network.
"Companies need to put a remote working policy in place, including
an IT strategy for supporting it," said Lewis Gee, Citrix
vice-president for the UK. "Otherwise, they risk employees becoming
increasingly frustrated with what they are able to do out of the
office, as well as wasted time and resources."