BT Workstyle director David Dunbar claimed staff and their employers can benefit from non-traditional working arrangements, meaning HR departments should be willing to promote their uptake.

It’s been suggested that many professionals enjoy working in their own home, helping them to become up to 20 per cent more productive.

Also, from a business perspective, Mr Dunbar noted that home working schemes can help companies reduce rental costs, bills and other expenditure.

BT has already seen the benefits of flexible working first-hand, and fully supports employees who wish to work away from the office.

The recent development of modern technology has enable employees to replicate their office space in their own home, as well as from any location through remote working technology, such as smartphones.

Find out more about flexible working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on ashdowngroup.com.

Recent research found that VoIP subscriptions grew by 15 per cent in the first three quarters of 2009, with 2.95 million people now using it in the UK.

These current trends point towards the domination of VoIP in the business communications marketplace.

According to experts, VoIP will become the standard for all voice calls eventually, as it simply becomes another data stream carried over IP networks.

It was also suggested that VoIP over 3G connections has the potential to cut mobile phone bills, especially with data rates continuing to fall.

Services accessible over a broadband connection include Skype, Google Talk and SightSpeed.

As well as voice, many VoIP providers allow users to engage in video conferencing and instant messaging.

Find out about remote working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on xlntelecom.co.uk.

Flexible working is especially relevant to parents who want to be as available for their children as possible and for those who care for sick or needy family members.

The arrangements to meet these needs are variable and include contractual, spatial or temporal flexibility. Examples include job sharing, teleworking and working from home.

By providing a degree of personal autonomy these arrangements ought to enhance well-being and allow the person some ownership of their work.

It is also assumed that these new working arrangements are beneficial to the health of employees, as it avoids common physical and psychological problems more associated with traditional working hours.

This, in turn, improves the work-life balance of employees, as they have more time available to spend with their families and less time commuting to-and-from the office.

Find more about flexible working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured in the Irish Independent. 

VoIP has enabled big innovation in telephony, with the numerous benefits contribute towards more cost-effective management.

According to experts, consumer adoption of technology, combined with higher bandwidth and more reliable internet connections from ISPs and mobile providers, are going to be major catalysts for the advancement of VoIP.

VoIP technology allows the user to make telephone calls using a computer network. A voice signal is converted from analogue to digital then sent over the internet, before being returned into a voice signal at its destination.

Advantages include cost effectiveness, higher levels of integration between communications systems and network consolidation.

Find out more about remote working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on 8el.com.

It was claimed remote working leads to workers becoming more concerned with objectives and performance rather than “time and attendance management.”

Businesses should not focus on “fishbowl-style” management, which means staff have to come into the office, even if it impacts on their performance. Many argue this is an example of poor management within an organisation.

Implementing flexible and remote working policies has many business benefits, as employees feel empowered, which, in turn, reduces stress and leads to increased productivity.

Recent research published by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) revealed that 42 per cent of firms introduced flexible working policies in order to counter the effects of the recent severe weather experienced across the UK.

Find out more about remote working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on connectivity.onestopclick.com.

This is in response to a survey that revealed nearly three-quarters (73 per cent) of office workers believed they would be more productive if they worked from home.

If there’s increased evidence supporting this then more employers might begin to consider offering flexible working on a more regular basis.

Flexible working saves in office space and associated costs, leaving more budget open for manpower, which, in turn, boosts graduate employment chances in a tough job market.

Less distractions at home often means employees can be more productive, as long as organisations have the right flexible working infrastructure in place.

There are a number of flexible working technologies available where employees can access remote applications and files with ease and speed, as well as having the appropriate security measures in place.

Find out more about flexible working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on pareto.co.uk.

The survey predicted that almost four out of every five US businesses will be using VoIP phones by 2013.

This shows that many flavours of VoIP exist and are being embraced by entire enterprises, as well as individual users.

Broadband-based VoIP applications make flexible working schemes easier to initiate and for that reason are attractive to both employers and employees.

One of the predictions of the survey is that all businesses will be using IP telephony by the end of the decade. This could be through something like voice-enabled instant messaging or a more sophisticated hosted telephony solution.

Previous research indicated that VoIP subscriber growth will accelerate in 2010 as economic conditions improve.

Find out more about flexible working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on telappliant.com.

Research by the organisation revealed that while 51 per cent of firms polled believed they are prepared for severe weather, the recent snowfall meant 29 per cent of staff could not get to work.

The survey also revealed that the conditions led to 42 per cent of respondents introducing remote working policies, while three in ten offered flexible hours.

John Wright, national chairman of FSB, said the organisation was calling for the creation of a new conference to find ways to keep the UK functioning in difficult conditions.

A recent study found that around half of office staff believe their bosses are sceptical of the benefits that remote working can offer them.

Find out more about remote working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on connectivity.onestopclick.com.

A spokesman from the leading business body has claimed there are many benefits to remote working, such as, staff retention, improved health and a reduction in absences, all of which are linked to a better employee work-life balance.

Remote working was also shown to offer advantages to organisations, as they can save on costs, mainly office rents and energy bills.

There a range of remote working options currently available to firms and this is shown in the growth of the concept in the past ten years, which can be implemented into the internal structure of all kinds of businesses.

However, recent research found that only a third of firms in the UK have flexible or remote working strategies in place, despite 73 per cent of employees suggesting that such practices would make them more productive.

Find out more about remote working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on connectivity.onestopclick.co.uk.

The study found that just a third of firms in the UK have remote working strategies in place.

This is despite 73 per cent of office workers claiming they would be more productive if given the opportunity to work flexibly using remote working technology.

Also 65 per cent of employees stated they tend to spend more time working on tasks at home. However, half of all bosses were sceptical over whether people would really be working when not in the office.

The research also pointed to the fact, reported in The Daily Telegraph yesterday, that organisations will have a healthier, happy and more motivated workforce if they support flexible working practices. 

It seems that too many employers are more concerned with what they perceived to be the negative aspects of remote working rather than the numerous benefits it will bring to both the organisation and employees.

Previous research revealed that remote workers are set to account for 73 per cent of the UK’s workforce by 2012.

Find out more about remote working technology at the Interchange Group.

As featured on connectivity.onestopclick.com.