SMEs ‘falling behind’ on flexible working technology
No more than four in ten (43 per cent) small and medium sized companies provide their staff with flexible working technology and computer software that supports remote access, according to new research from Citrix Online.
The firm, which provides businesses with remote-desktop access solutions, found that only 40 per cent of smaller firms offered employees flexible working opportunities, such as working from home, compared with 76 per cent of larger companies.
Furthermore, only one in five employers is planning to introduce technology that will make this possible in the next three years, despite the fact that corporations are continuing to improve the work-life balance offered to staff in an attempt to hang on to the best qualified workers.
"Perhaps the most surprising finding of this research is that SMBs, who often have greater operational flexibility than their corporate competitors, are failing to seize the opportunity offered by flexible working," said Simon Presswell, Citrix Online managing director.
He explained that small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) were falling behind their larger competitors and would find it increasingly difficult to recruit highly skilled staff in the future.
