Federal IT managers give their agencies average grades for progress made on mobility and telework, despite a law, a White House strategy and high returns to investment encouraging them to embrace laptops over desktops, according to a survey from Alexandria, Va.-based Mobile Work Exchange.
Seventy-seven percent of IT managers said their agency deserved a B or a C grade for its implementation of 2012’s Digital Government Strategy–the White House’s effort to make government data more compatible and accessible from mobile devices, including laptops, tablets and smartphones. Eighty-one percent of managers gave their agencies a B or C for the Telework Enhancement Act of 2010. The congressional law requires agencies to invest in telework for federal employees.
The average grades from IT are despite the fact that 69 percent HR managers said telework investments yielded positive returns. Those who did not report positive returns expected to do so in the next three years.
HR departments have also felt pressure from employees to increase telework options. Eighty-eight percent reported they lost at least one employee over lack of telework, while 54 percent said they were unable to hire the best candidate because of his or her telework requirements.
HR pinpointed agency culture as the biggest hindrance to embracing telework, followed by management resistance and security concerns.
HR and IT agree on several ways to improve telework and mobility. Rallying the support from senior leadership was a top priority as well as promoting employee training, which encourages productivity and security.
Mobile Work Exchange surveyed 154 IT and HR managers in defense, intelligence and civilian agencies. The full results of its survey can be found on its website.