UK employers don’t trust staff enough to work mobile

Only 8% of UK employers trust their staff to work out of the office, even though two-fifths (42%) of workers believed they could do a better job working remotely.

YouGov surveyed nearly 3,500 workers at firms with fewer than 500 staff for BT Business and Nortel. The results showed managers are reluctant to let their people work while roaming or from home.

John Wright, national chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, said, "This boils down to a matter of trust. In the current climate, small firms need to be operating at full stretch. Recent bad weather demonstrated the need for British businesses to enable their employees to be productive, wherever they are."

Those that have unleashed their workers are not sorry. John Dovey, IT services director at BT Business, said, "BT's 70,000 flexible workers have saved us £500m in building costs and 100,000 tonnes of CO2. We can manage our employees effectively, and we have seen a 30%rise in productivity."

Despite dramatic changes in the UK workforce since the 1970s, the research points to outdated working practices. Managers appear to think that if employees are not at their desks, they are not working.

This perception could be addressed by integrating voice, data, fixed and wireless business channels, the firms said. Thisallowed teams to work together, answer calls and customer queries whether in or out of the office.

"Managers can check productivity down to the number of calls and e-mails that are made and answered," said the survey report.

Dovey said BT's flexi-workers were more responsive to new opportunities and customer enquiries wherever they were. "Faster reaction and fulfilment times are a positive way to increase customer satisfaction, increase loyalty and encourage growth. These technologies can also help to attract and retain staff through flexible working," he said.