Codestone

Category: Workforce mobility

Companies offering home working to their staff have been told they are likely to come to rely on instant messaging services in the years to come.

Dr Graeme Codrington, futurist at Tomorrowtoday.uk.com, explained there are several systems that will have a great impact on the option.

One of these is instant messaging, which he predicted will overtake email as the greatest way to communicate by the end of this decade.

The technology "will change the way office workers connect and create more fertile ground for remote workers", the expert claimed.

Dr Codrington went on to suggest that office-based systems will change the mindsets of those working in offices, which in turn should have a "knock-on effect" on the acceptance of others working from home and other remote locations.

Recent research by the Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals found that 32 per cent of staff in the UK feel flexible options – such as home working – are becoming more important to them.

Posted by Lara Ward