Technology Enabling Greater Workplace Flexibility

For executives and staff members alike, it’s no secret that the workday begins well before hitting the office door. In fact, according to a new study commissioned by data protection company Mozy, 18 percent of U.S. workers have checked their work email before 7 a.m. 

The results of Mozy’s study demonstrate that for many, their work and personal lives are blending throughout the day. And employers, for the most part, are OK with that.

“Employees should be surprised that their management and their employers recognize that work habits are changing,” said Gytis Barzdukas, senior director of product management for Mozy. In fact, many employers don’t mind when employees are a little bit late or take care of personal matters at work because they know their employees are putting in extra time throughout the day.

According to the study, U.S. employers tolerate their staff arriving up to 37 minutes late in the day. But this likely comes as a surprise to those employees, as more than half believe their managers will be unhappy if they are late. Furthermore, 48 percent of U.S. bosses don’t mind when workers take longer lunches, and 22 percent don’t care when employees take care of personal tasks at work.

The global results of Mozy’s survey show that the average person begins checking work email from home at 7:42 a.m. and doesn’t fully stop working until 7:19 p.m. So whether they are at home or in the office, employees are in “work mode” for nearly 12 hours each day.

These lengthened hours come with some additional workplace flexibility, as more than half of workers feel fine about leaving work early for appointments, and 21 percent think nothing of taking care of personal tasks like online banking or shopping at work.

New technologies have enabled this workplace trend, said Barzdukas. “Mobile and cloud technologies allow people to be more productive wherever they may be.”

Twenty percent of U.S. employers provide their workers with the technology to access everything on the go, including email, network drives and applications, and front and back-office cloud services, according to Mozy’s survey. Mozy, for example, offers a product called Stash that allows users to synch data across multiple devices, including personal computers, work computers and mobile devices.

Barzdukas noted that the countries in which employers provide the most access to their employees seem to have the most flexible workplaces.

Mozy is a provider of secure data access and backup for consumers and businesses. The company was launched in Utah and was acquired by EMC Corporation, based in Seattle, in 2007.

For additional survey information, visit www.mozy.com/9-5