New research reveals European business leaders are working longer hours than ever
London, UK – 8 January, 2008: UK business leaders work the longest hours in Europe, according to new research launched today by European business communication provider Interoute. Nearly half of UK bosses (47 per cent) work more than 60 hours each week, while the average figure of European bosses working the same hours was 34 per cent. Spanish business leaders were the least likely to work a 60-hour week, with just 28 per cent doing so, followed by the Italians (29 per cent) and the French (32 per cent).
Interoute surveyed 1,050 senior business decision-makers (CEOs, MDs, CIOs and CFOs) across seven European countries (UK, France, Spain, Germany, The Netherlands, Italy and Poland), and found that more than half of respondents (55 per cent) are working more hours per week than they were in 2000. This is despite communications technologies designed to help with work/life balance and enable more flexible working.
Communications technology is now so advanced that people can work from home, or on the road in the same way as they can in the office . According to the research, this mobile culture is facilitated by the growing use of video conferencing and online meeting services across Europe. This goes a long way to meet the needs of a mobile workforce.
Gareth Williams CEO at Interoute said: “Technology should be an enabler that brings flexibility and responsiveness to business practice and leads to more productive use of time spent travelling or away from the office."
“We work in a highly competitive world and for UK business sectors like the financial services sector to maintain its position as a global leader, it’s paramount that these technologies form the backbone of any business infrastructure. Unexpected events, no matter how big or small, can have a devastating impact on productivity, with the delay to the opening of Liverpool Street station being the latest example of lost time and productivity for thousands of City workers. Advanced communications technology gives businesses the flexibility to work around these incidents with little or no impact on productivity.”
About Interoute
Interoute is the owner operator of Europe's most advanced and densely connected voice and data network, encompassing over 54,000 kms of lit fibre. Its full-service next generation network serves more than 12,000 customers across a broad range of sectors from finance to retail and every major European incumbent, as well as the major operators of North America, East and South Asia, governments, universities and research agencies. These organisations find Interoute the ideal partner for hosting content, providing wholesale transit services, corporate access or creating new services. With established operations throughout mainland Europe, North America and Dubai Interoute also owns and operates dense city networks throughout Europe's major business centres. More than €1 billion in e-commerce transactions flows through its data centres each day, making Interoute a key part of Europe’s Digital Supply Chain. www.interoute.com
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