Few US firms ready for workforce disruption: survey

WASHINGTON – A survey published Monday of information technology managers at over 500 US-based companies has found that only about one in four has enabled more than half their workforce to work remotely.

Only 27 percent of those surveyed on behalf of Cisco, a major US provider of networking solutions, has equipped more than half their workers with the laptops, smartphones and private networks to allow them to work remotely in case of a major disruption of daily worklife.

Fifty-three percent said less than half their employees were set up to work remotely and 21 percent said none of their employees could do so.

Company-owned laptops (63 percent) and smartphones (46 percent) were the leading devices supplied by companies to provide remote access to employees, the survey found.

Thirty-eight percent said business requirements did not necessitate equipping more of their employees with the technology that would allow them to work outside the office.

Twenty percent listed budget constraints while 15 percent cited security concerns as a deterrent to providing more remote access for their workers.

Twenty-two percent of those surveyed said their current remote-access solutions have positioned their companies for business continuity in the event of workforce disruptions such as transit failures or natural disasters.

Fifteen percent listed “pandemic or other disaster preparedness” as a top business driver for providing remote access to employees.

Seventy-one percent said employee productivity is a key business driver for providing remote access and 62 percent of those who have adopted mobility and remote-access technology said it has resulted in increased productivity.

“Secure remote access and business continuity go hand-in-hand,” said Fred Kost, Cisco’s director of security solutions marketing.

“Companies that have made secure remote access broadly available have realized improved efficiency and continuity of operations.”

The survey of 502 IT decision-makers from US-based companies working in the health care, retail, finance, government and education sectors was conducted by InsightExpress for Cisco between September 30 and October 6.

The companies surveyed ranged from fewer than 20 employees to more than 10,000 employees with about 33 percent employing more than 1,000 workers. –Agence France-Presse