WASHINGTON, Nov. 16, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Since the passing of the Telework Enhancement Act of 2010, implementation of telework procedures by federal managers has shown progress and limitations according to a report released today by FedScoop.
FedScoop surveyed more than 300 IT executives from the federal government and private sector. The survey, sponsored by HP and Intel Corporation, assessed the evolving perspectives and practices of telework.
According to the report, 9 in 10 federal managers said that they trust their team to work from a remote location, but only 61 percent of respondents said their managers allow them to telework.
"The results of the survey showed us that although government managers report trusting their employees to work remotely, the practices aren't necessarily in place to make this possible," said Goldy Kamali, founder and president of FedScoop. "Overall, most respondents felt that government teleworking policies should be progressing at a faster rate."
Additional data from the report indicated:
- Forty-three percent of federal employees surveyed said their agency does not provide them with technology that sufficiently supports teleworking, compared with only 13 percent of private sector respondents.
- Sixty-nine percent of federal employees said the federal government telework progress is not improving rapidly enough.
- Three in four federal employees surveyed said their agency has designated a telework coordinator, but only 56 percent have met with this person.
- On the issue of security, 84 percent of federal employees said they are concerned about a cyber-attack on their organization, and 3 in 4 feds believe their network could experience critical failure.
"With nearly half of federal employees indicating their technology equipment is not sufficient to telework, it is clear that the government is behind the private sector in implementing procedures and acquiring technology," said Nigel Ballard, director of federal marketing at Intel. "But it is encouraging to see that more and more managers are realizing the benefits that can be gained from increased flexibility and mobility within their workforce."
Still, the enthusiasm for teleworking is strong and federal workers are confident that the right technology will help them remain efficient. Ninety-one percent of feds surveyed said they are interested in teleworking, and 61 percent believe that technology can help them fully replace face-to-face meetings.
"Technology plays an important role in creating safe and reliable computing environment for mobile workers in both the public and private sectors," said Christina Morrison, public sector marketing manager at HP. "For example, teleworkers can use virtual web conferencing technology to replicate their in-person meetings while reducing their carbon footprint, travel expenses and long commute times."
The survey results come nearly one year after President Barack Obama signed the Telework Enhancement Act of 2010 into law. The Act gave the head of each executive federal agencies no more than 180 days to establish a telework policy, determine who was eligible and notify all employees who were eligible for telework. Federal CIO Steven VanRoekel recently emphasized the need for "smart telework policies that give employees increased flexibility."
The entire study is available for download at www.fedscoop.com.
About FedScoop
FedScoop is a Government IT media company, a one stop news source and the government IT community's platform for education and collaboration. FedScoop gathers top leaders from The White House, federal agencies, academia and the tech industry to discuss ways technology can improve government, and to exchange best practices and identify ways to achieve common goals.
For Press Inquiries:
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SOURCE FedScoop
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