Results from a Europe-wide survey conducted by researcher Coleman Parkes, show that Irish business are more wary than their European counterparts about the impact flexible working will have for their staff.
Staff too, showed their wariness as 40% expressed concerns that they would not be able to convince bosses that they were putting in the hours while flexible working. This compares with a mere one in four in the rest of Europe.
Another startling result was that 37% of directors and 34% of staff in Ireland regarded flexible working as a barrier to teamwork. These figures compare with just 12% voicing similar concerns in the UK and 23% across the rest of Europe.
The Citrix-sponsored study found that among Irish managers, 27% expressed concerns over difficulties in managing staff with 20% over difficulties in motivating staff.
From the rest of Europe primary concerns centred around compromises in data security and the complexity of the technology necessary to implement flexible working, with staff concerns figuring lowly.
Trust is the key issue it appears, both among staff and employers. Rory Caren, communications manager, IBM Ireland, said that “if you have it as a formal structure and a formal commitment by the company, that this is an offer for people, that is important. It can’t be a loose agreement that is interpreted differently by manager A or manager B. It has to be part of your HR policy, in terms of the way you want to go forward with your employees. This idea of flexible working cannot be just thrown into the mix.”
The trust issue extends to the technology too. Niall Gilmore, Citrix sales manager, Data Solutions, said that companies need to make access to corporate data and assets “access that doesn’t take away from the security and integrity of companies”. However, both Caren and Gilmore, as end users, were confident in the technology they used, as were their respective companies. Gilmore said “One of the things that may be holding things back is whether the security or integrity of information is compromised by allowing access from what could be a web café or a home office.” As the tools to implement flexible working can identify a user’s access device, location and posture and give the appropriate access, these fears are somewhat unfounded. It is the attitude toward work itself, however, that needs to change.
“If a company does not trust its employees to act with this in a mature and professional way, then it has to work very hard to achieve it” said Caren. Of flexible working Caren added, “performance targets are still there, this is just a tool to help employees do their job better.”
“The feeling is that you don’t have that control if they are not in line of sight, or if they are not in the building. It’s an Irish attitude that needs to change because flexible working can be a competitive advantage for companies”, said Gilmore.
Despite the benefits of flexible and teleworking in attracting and retaining staff, Irish employers and staff appear to be letting outdated attitudes impede their adoption of flexible work technology and practices. The situation is at odds with Ireland’s drive toward a knowledge-based economy and may see Ireland’s workforce fall behind the rest of Europe in enjoying the benefits of teleworking for both staff and business. “Work is something I do; it does not have to be a place I go to,” said Gilmore.
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