Cisco has released the findings of its Teleworker Survey, a study of almost 2,000 company employees. The study, conducted to evaluate the social, economic and environmental impacts associated with telecommuting at Cisco, revealed that a majority of respondents experienced an increase in work-life flexibility, productivity and overall satisfaction as a result of their ability to work remotely.

According to the company, as the modern workforce continues to evolve and globalise, more companies are evaluating a telecommuting strategy to save costs and lower carbon emissions as well as to retain efficient employees.

According to Cisco’s Internet Business Services Group, the company’s global strategic consulting arm, the company has generated an estimated annual savings of $277m in productivity by allowing employees to telecommute and telework.

Also, with the adoption of enterprise-class remote connectivity products like Cisco Virtual Office, Cisco OfficeExtend and virtual collaboration tools like Cisco WebExTM, the company anticipates that employees and employers would continue to see a rise in the benefits associated with telecommuting.

Cisco conducted the survey in late 2008 to evaluate a number of telecommuting topics, including commuting patterns, technology barriers, work quality and productivity, environmental impacts, and advantages and disadvantages of the flexible lifestyle, as well as overall employee satisfaction.

The survey found that by telecommuting, 83% of employees said their ability to communicate and collaborate with co-workers was the same as, if not better than, it was when working on-site and 67% of survey respondents said their overall work quality improved when telecommuting.

Reportedly, an improved quality of life through telecommuting was cited by 80% of survey respondents. Telecommuting could also lead to a higher employee retention rate, as more than 91% of respondents say telecommuting is somewhat or very important to their overall satisfaction.

The survey also reported that Cisco employees report a fuel cost savings of $10.3m per year due to telecommuting.