Employee Culture, Employee Experience, Flexible Working
14 May 2019
New research reveals that working women are setting the standard of a healthy work-life balance, finding ways of minimising the likelihood of colleagues interrupting valuable time out. The survey by Polycom shows that UK men are a third more likely than women to be interrupted by work and join a conference call while on holiday or during a family event.
Commenting on the findings, Tim Stone, Vice President of Marketing EMEA, for Polycom, said: “Technology, such as video and audio conferencing solutions, enable us to connect and collaborate with our colleagues around the world from anywhere. However, it is important that we manage our workload so as not to infringe on valuable downtime. We can’t always tally diaries with those of our colleagues, but quality time off is absolutely critical to mental wellbeing and maintaining a healthy work-life balance.”
On the upside, technology is allowing workers to move out of the confines of their office. A fifth of people working from home say they have conducted a meeting from their back garden, with over half (51%) of conference calls now being made from outside the traditional office.
This is an effect of the UK workforce becoming ever-more mobile, with two-thirds now working from home at least once a month. The onus is on businesses to facilitate this desire for flexible work, but also protect staff from overworking. “With the right culture, policies, and technology in place, this should be easily achievable,” says Stone.
Cognition24 can help transform the working lives of your people, implementing and optimising technology that will make staff more efficient and productive with their time – so that they don’t have their leisure hours interrupted with thoughts of work. During Mental Health Awareness Week, we’re calling on employers to take the lead in fostering mental wellbeing in the workplace.
