Survey analysis of 400+ IT professionals in the U.S. and U.K. on the future, post-pandemic state of remote work uncovers inter-office tensions, challenges and opportunities, and technology changes in remote-forward organizations.
AUSTIN, Texas – August 19, 2021 – Spiceworks Ziff Davis (SWZD) published The Future of Remote Work report, outlining insights from a 2021 survey of 400+ IT professionals that manage technologies necessary to support employees within their organization. Research analysis uncovered future challenges, opportunities, and the geographic and technological factors that enable a remote-first workplace as flexible work policies continue to evolve.
The survey revealed that the vast majority of IT professionals (76%) would prefer to work remotely in the future, at least some of the time. In sharp contrast, our data reveals only 25% of the overall workforce will be remote once it’s safe to return to offices (6% going fully remote and 19% hybrid-remote).
The disparity between supply and demand for remote work can be attributed partially to the belief among management that remote workers aren’t as productive, although 70% of IT professionals think remote workers are equally or more productive than onsite workers in a similar role. While most individual contributors (59%) are in favor of remote work, management is less supportive, especially at the executive level (32%).
Challenges in Remote Work Adoption and Execution
It comes as a surprise that only 11% of companies supporting remote workers hired additional IT staff during the pandemic, given the challenges that can arise in organizations adopting a flexible work policy. This bears no weight on the level of work it takes to go remote: 55% of IT professionals say it’s more difficult to support remote workers than those in the office, and 73% say a shift to remote work at their company created additional work for IT.
Insufficient infrastructure is another common challenge among organizations considering a flexible work policy. In 30% of businesses, legacy technology hinders remote work, and poor home internet connectivity limits employees in 55% of all companies and 69% of companies based in rural areas.
Our data also reveals that a stigma exists around remote work among 42% of companies in rural areas, compared to only 29% of organizations in urban areas. As a result, employees working for companies headquartered in rural areas will be much less likely to work remotely after the pandemic ends (12% compared to ~30% in suburban and rural areas).
The ability or lack thereof to easily cut back on office space also factors into whether businesses will implement a flexible work policy. In companies that primarily rent office space, an estimated 41% of employees will go remote after the pandemic (either fully or hybrid), compared to only 17% of workers within companies that primarily own their office space.
Remote Work Technology Opportunities
It’s clear that the immediate, often-mandated shift to remote work in 2020 fundamentally altered the way we look at the modern workplace. A previous SWZD study suggests at the height of the pandemic, 61% of the overall workforce went remote. And with a newly remote workforce comes new needs and technologies to support them — 55% of companies increased tech spending during the pandemic.
Among companies with flexible work policies, security solutions to support remote workers are poised for the most adoption growth, with an additional 16% planning to adopt them within two years. On the other side of the same security-coin, 33% of companies supporting remote workers plan to adopt tools to monitor employees, which are controversial due to concerns over trust and privacy.
While 40% of companies planning to use remote monitoring software will track employee productivity or time on task, only 21% of IT professionals believe these tools can effectively measure worker productivity.
By 2023, one-third of companies with flexible work policies also plan to adopt hotel desk / hot desk booking systems, which assist hybrid-remote employees in reserving shared office seating and meeting rooms.
“Throughout the pandemic, technology has empowered employees to stay productive and connected, even amid lockdowns and stay-at-home orders,” said Peter Tsai, Head of Technology Insights, SWZD. “From video conferencing, to cloud-based collaboration solutions, to voice over IP, we’re at a point now where technology is mature and reliable enough to support a truly global, remote workforce. In fact, our research indicates 84% of IT professionals believe the technology exists to allow remote workers to be as productive as in-office workers.”
Methodology
The survey was conducted by SWZD in May and June 2021 and included more than 400 IT professionals from organizations across North America and Europe. Respondents represent a variety of company sizes, including small- to medium-sized businesses and enterprises, in addition to a variety of industries, including healthcare, education, government, and manufacturing.
For more information and a complete list of survey results, contact us, or visit: https://swzd.com/resources/
About Spiceworks Ziff Davis
Spiceworks Ziff Davis (SWZD), a division of J2 Global, Inc. (JCOM), is a trusted global marketplace that connects technology buyers and sellers with the most actionable and precise intent data. We are uniquely positioned to offer tech brands unmatched visibility into accounts that are truly in-market, by leveraging our scale, quality, and diversity of intent data. With unparalleled access to the world’s most influential technology buyers through a combination of first-party (e.g., Community, Tools, Editorial) and third-party intent data, SWZD is a leader in intent-backed, intelligent, omnichannel marketing. For more information, visit www.swzd.com.
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