40 percent of workers in Croatia are not ‘tied’ to office desks

A new study by Regus, a global provider of business spaces, shows that half of the global workforce now utilizes flexible working options.

Regus’s global economic indicator for 2013 shows that professionals tied to office desks will soon be in the minority. The study conducted by Regus involved over 26,000 managers from 90 countries, and the results showed that 48 percent of the workforce now works from a remote location at least half of the workweek. In Croatia, two-fifths of managers work flexibly for at least half the week (40 percent). Some directors may be troubled by how to motivate and supervise remote workers. However, the Regus study showed that 48 percent of Croatian respondents (55 percent globally) believe that effective supervision of remote workers is entirely achievable, and a significant number of companies are increasingly monitoring their remote workers more strictly.

Mark Dixon, CEO of Regus, commented: ‘If management takes responsibility, everyone can benefit from flexible working. The business people we spoke to say that trust and autonomy play a key role in managing remote workers, and the benefits are very noticeable: higher productivity, greater employee retention, and lower operational costs.’

The Regus study found that 31 percent of Croatian companies (close to the global figure of 37 percent) use specific systems to monitor the performance of mobile employees, while 29 percent of managers working remotely use video calls to communicate with their teams (globally 43 percent).

American health insurance company Aetna, a leader in this field, has also added training to ensure that remote workers and their managers are informed about effective ways of flexible working. As many as 14,500 employees of Aetna out of a total of 35,000 do not have an office desk (Reuters.com, In a telecommunications discussion, Aetna highlights the large number of employees working from home, March 1, 2013).

The experience of flexible working can be extremely important when it comes to young employees. As many as 37 percent of respondents from Croatia believe that younger employees become more responsible when working from a remote location. There is also a belief that flexible working shapes a new type of interaction between line managers and their team members. Additionally, 21 percent of respondents think that remote management facilitates maintaining a more professional relationship with employees.

Key findings for Croatia:
• 40% of workers work from a remote location for half the week or more
• 48% say that supervising employees at remote locations is a goal that can be achieved, but only if managers undergo special training
• 39% consider trust an important factor
• 31% of companies use performance monitoring systems for mobile employees
• 29% use video communication between managers and employees
• 21% believe that remote management facilitates maintaining a professional relationship with employees