Remotely access could save up to 127 hours a year

The UK economy is missing out on £30bn worth of growth due to a 'connectivity deficit' in Britain’s biggest businesses and public sector organisations, according to a new study released today by O2 and the Centre for Economic and Business Research.

Despite many organisations endorsing the benefits of smart, connected technology, 80pc admit staff still don’t have remote access to key business systems such as apps and instant messaging tools, which allow them to work effectively away from the office.

This means that staff are wasting huge amounts of time making unnecessary trips to and from the office, resulting in a decline in business productivity of nearly 5pc in Q4 2013, compared to pre-2007/8. The study, based on a survey of 1,000 middle-managers from organisations with over 250 employees across the private and public sectors, found that connecting staff with the technology that allows them to get work completed at the point of need could save each employee up to 127 hours a year in travel.