July 13, 2009

The Teleworker Survey conducted by Cisco of nearly 2000 employees to evaluate the social, economic and environmental impacts associated with telecommuting revealed a majority of respondents experienced a significant increase in work-life flexibility, productivity and overall satisfaction as a result of their ability to work remotely.

As the modern workforce continues to evolve and globalize, more
companies are evaluating a telecommuting strategy to save costs and
lower carbon emissions as well as to retain top talent, says Cisco. For
them, Cisco’s survey highlights the gains that a sound telecommuting
strategy provides for employees and employers alike.

According to Cisco’s Internet Business Services Group (the company’s
global strategic consulting arm), the company has generated an
estimated annual savings of $277 million in productivity by allowing
employees to telecommute and telework. In addition, with the steady
adoption of enterprise-class remote connectivity solutions, Cisco
anticipates that employees and employers will continue to see a rise in
the benefits associated with telecommuting.

Cisco says its next-generation workforce employees spend about 63% of
their time communicating and collaborating. 40% of employees say they
are not located in the same city as their manager, and the average
employee now telecommutes 2.0 days per week. 60% of the time saved by
telecommuting is spent working and 40% spent on personal time.

About 69% of the employees surveyed cited higher productivity when
working remote, and 75% of those surveyed said the timeliness of their
work improved. By telecommuting, 83% of employees said their ability to
communicate and collaborate with co-workers was the same as, if not
better, than it was when working onsite. 67% of survey respondents said
their overall work quality improved when telecommuting. An improved
quality of life through telecommuting was cited by 80% of respondents.
Telecommuting can also lead to a higher employee retention rate, says
Cisco, as more than 91% of respondents say telecommuting is somewhat or
very important to their overall satisfaction.

“In the age of a global market, time and distance separates people and
workspaces. Cisco has long recognized that telecommuting and
collaborative technologies are effective in breaking down separation
barriers and enabling the transition to the borderless enterprise,”
said Rami Mazid, vice-president, global client services and operations,
Cisco. “In addition, as demonstrated by our recent study, a properly
executed program for telecommuting can be extremely effective at
unlocking employee potential by increasing work-life balance,
productivity and overall satisfaction.”

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