Research shows employees in India can be more productive when using personal devices in the workplace

VMware New Way of Work Study 2012 shows productivity gains and a happier workforce may be tied to ‘New IT’
Companies should consider more liberal corporate IT policies to cater to the new virtual worker

New Delhi, INDIA – March 23, 2012: Allowing employees to use devices and applications of their choice is a key to a happier and more efficient workforce according to new research commissioned by VMware (NYSE: VMW), the global leader in virtualization and cloud infrastructure.

The ‘New Way of Work Study 2012,’ conducted across 10 countries in Asia-Pacific, found that the growing incidence of employees bringing their personal smartphones, tablets and social media are actually making them (72 percent) more productive at the work place. This occurrence is highly prevalent in India, where 77 percent of the respondents are bringing and working on their personal device at the work place.

The survey revealed that, while a large number of employees (82 percent) in India are provided with a portable device from their employer, many (77 percent) still bring their own device to work to help them complete their tasks. Of all respondents in India, 72 percent claimed to be more productive when they worked on devices of their choice and 70 percent claimed to be happier in their role when they were allowed to use a device of their choice. And, 66 percent say they find work less stressful when they have a choice of what IT tools they use.

Although respondents indicate that being able to use their own portable devices may help them do their work better, they report that their work environments are restricting their ability to do so. The research revealed that 47 percent of Indian workers felt their organizations’ current IT policies on using personal devices actually lowered their potential work efficiency.

“With the growth of the smartphone and tablet market, the study indicates that corporate India may be seeing growth in the preference of employees for bring your own device (BYOD) practices,” said T Srinivasan, Managing Director, VMware India & SAARC. “The research results suggest that organizations may need to keep an open mind to allow for the change in the way their people want to work in the Post-PC era.”

“With the consumerization of IT, the mobile worker is today evolving to a virtual worker for whom location and device are becoming less relevant. As these virtual workers define the IT culture at the workplace, technologies such as virtualization, cloud computing services, and security can help companies adapt,” he added.

India’s desire to use personal mobile devices at work is driven by the need to be mobile (47 percent) and to be more connected (39 percent). These were the leading choices from a list of 10 that respondents selected from. The research also showed that most respondents appreciate the elevated effectiveness of producing desired outcome (72 percent) and boosted efficiency (66 percent), thus citing better job satisfaction (70 percent).

There is a high incidence of employees in India bringing their personal smartphones (78 percent) to the workplace, followed by laptops (53 percent) and tablets (17 percent). The research shows that a considerably high number of respondents are actually working outside the office – 79 percent are working from home and 53 percent on the road – considerably higher than the average across the region.

Commenting on the findings of the study, Surabhi Mathur Gandhi, Senior Vice President (IT Sourcing), TeamLease said, “The VMware New Way of Work Study clearly demonstrates that the world of corporate IT is changing. Re-orienting the work culture and infrastructure policies will strengthen productivity, while providing additional flexibility to the workforce. Employees today want to work at companies that can provide high-end technology to support the dynamic work expectations of the current workplace demands.”

When considering potential employers, 70 percent of respondents believe the ones who offer technological freedom are more progressive, dynamic, and desirable to work for.

About the Study

The VMware New Way of Work Study was commissioned by, and conducted on behalf of, VMware by Acorn Marketing & Research Consultants in January and February 2012. A total of 2,077 people between the ages of 18-64 years old were interviewed. All the participants work in organizations with more than 1,000 staff globally, and were at work for at least 15 hours or more a week. The survey was conducted in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, China, Japan and South Korea.

About VMware

VMware is the leader in virtualization and cloud infrastructure solutions that enable businesses to thrive in the Cloud Era. Customers rely on VMware to help them transform the way they build, deliver and consume Information Technology resources in a manner that is evolutionary and based on their specific needs. With 2011 revenues of $3.77 billion, VMware has more than 350,000 customers and 50,000 partners. The company is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the world and can be found online at www.vmware.com.

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VMware is a registered trademark of VMware, Inc. in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other marks and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies. The use of the word “partner” or “partnership” does not imply a legal partnership relationship between VMware and any other company.

NOTE TO EDITORS

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

-       77% of employees surveyed bring a personal device to work and use it for work-related purposes

-       70% of those surveyed are satisfied with their job at organizations with ‘Bring Your Own Device’ policies

-       Large number of interviewed employees are citing the benefits of effectively achieving desired outcomes (72%) and raised efficiency (66%) on the job, thus supporting better job satisfaction (70%) at work

-       Most (97%) companies are aware that their employees bring their personal devices to work, however 44% of them do not provide any support at the corporate level

-       Laptops (94%) and smartphones (53%) are some of the most commonly used devices for work-related purposes

-       Mobility (47%) and connectedness (39%) are the main reasons why employees bring their personal portable devices to work

-       82% of the respondents enjoyed the privilege of owning a corporate portable device, of them, 93% were laptops and 54% smartphones

-       A majority of the respondents felt that using self-chosen web-based software / apps raises efficiency (76%), accelerates problem solving (71%) and enhances communication (71%) at the workplace

-       Most respondents (76%) use web-based software or apps for work or business purpose almost every day which coincided with 70% of personal usage

Media Contacts:

Vivaan Gideon (VMware)

vgideon@vmware.com; +91 9972291924

Sonali Pappur Sadanand (VOX Public Relations India)

SonaliP.S@voxpr.co.in, +91 9844489854