Almost half (47%) of IT decision makers in northern Europe admit their company IT policies need updating to cope with the growing trend of employees using their own devices in the workplace, a Cisco study reveals.
The survey of 503 IT chiefs reveals a growing need for up to date IT policies as demand for remote access to corporate networks grows, and more staff utilize their own devices for business. The majority of company chiefs (60%) believe offering the ability to work remotely boosts productivity, with 56% reporting that they work for at least an extra hour each day when out of the office.
Cisco quizzed IT managers and consumers in Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands. The consumer-side - involving 523 people – reveals that 53% would trade salary for the ability to work remotely, and that 82% use a device for work that hasn’t been issued by their employer.
“Our Workforce Survey…confirms that employees really want an open and flexible workplace environment [and] that IT decision makers want to accommodate this requirement and in a secure way enable a mobile, distributed workforce,” Niels Furu, vice president of Cisco Northern Europe comments.
The research also reveals that 57% of IT managers believe security is the biggest challenge in enabling remote access. Cloud computing and enabling mobile access to corporate information top the technologies IT chiefs are examining, and 60% believe video will become more important as a means of business communication.