It’s been wild year. It’s been one that has accelerated changes in industries that, under normal circumstances would have taken years, or decades – if at all. As part of our work in digital transformation and technology we perform ongoing research to find the real and current sentiment of the U.S population on topics ranging from Telehealth to Hospitality to Voter ID.
In our research on working from home and COVID-19 over a year ago, we discovered that if given the opportunity, the majority of those working from home due to COVID-19, would like to continue doing so in the future.
And now it is confirmed, for many work from home is here to stay. Examples include the workers in the state of Maine, Facebook, and the technology triangle in North Carolina.
Even a new Harvard study has confirmed what we uncovered last year. Employees “want flexibility from their employers to allow them to maintain the new work/home balance and productivity they have come to enjoy.”
Press release with more detail on Metova’s research on working from home is below.
To read a Q&A with Metova CTO, Andrew Cowart on the tech and security issues around working from home, please click HERE.
Survey of Those Working from Home Due to COVID-19 Reveals New Realities of Productivity, Security and Technology
Survey Commissioned by Metova Reveals a New Normal with 48% Saying They Are More Productive Working From Home and 57% Preferring to Work From Home in the Future
CONWAY, Ark. April 29, 2020 – Metova, a world-leading provider of mobile, web, connected home and car, and IoT (Internet of Things) solutions, fueled by emerging technologies including machine learning, mixed reality, and blockchain, today announced the results of their April 2020 technology survey revealing the sentiment of over 1000 consumers who are new to working from home due to COVID-19 on topics including technology, productivity, and security. Notably, the survey found 48% say they are more productive working from home, 57% would prefer to work from home in the future and 68% have other workers or students also working in their household.
For a freely reusable infographic summarizing Metova’s Work From Home COVID-19 Survey, please visit: https://metova.com/infographic-work-from-home-covid-19/
Other survey findings include 31% think working from home is less secure than working in the office and 18% say their employer does not have clear security and password guidelines and procedures for working from home. In addition, 76% use video conferencing as part of their daily work while 53% have experienced glitches, or dropped audio during video conferences. For more details on the survey findings, please see the bullet point summary below.
“We’re seeing a significant split among those who are new to working from home due to COVID-19 with a large group saying they are more productive and prefer to work from home, though almost half still prefer the office,” said Jonathan Sasse, president at Metova. “Because of this pandemic, we’ve seen the impact of an entire workforce attempting to work from home and as a result, employers may need to rethink their entire plan for working from home and their policies and practices going forward.”
To read a Q&A with Metova CTO, Andrew Cowart on the tech and security issues around working from home, as well as the benefits and drawbacks of tech remedies including Google and Apple’s contact tracking initiative, and smart health technologies, please visit: https://metova.com/remote-work-covid-19-a-qa/
Metova Working From Home COVID-19 Survey Results:
- 48% are more productive working from home (29% say they are less productive)
- 57% would prefer to work from home in the future
- 68% have others in their household also working from home. (including students)
- 31% think working from home is less secure than working in the office
- 18% say their employer does not have clear security guidelines for working from home
- 20% do not always follow their company security guidelines or do not have guidelines
- 37% have encountered possible security issues while working from home
- 76% use video conferencing as part of their daily work
- 53% have experienced glitches or dropped audio, with video conferencing
- 54% have upgraded their technology (computer, printer, laptop) to work from home
Additional Metova consumer tech sentiment surveys include: Internet of Things, Mobile First, the Connected Car and Smartphones and Healthcare.
To learn more about how Metova can help optimize your business for work from home, visit our Remote Work page HERE.
