Slow broadband is perhaps the most frustrating part of hybrid working – and it seems that most workers agree.
In its 2022 Broadband Index Report, networking giant Cisco revealed findings that show 70% think broadband services need to improve dramatically to enable everyone to work from home.
Almost two-thirds of workers rely on their broadband connection for their work, according to the survey, and a staggering 76% believe that having fast, reliable data will be the cornerstone of continued economic growth.
Time for an upgrade
As the pandemic changed working patterns around the world, broadband suddenly become one of the highest priorities for workers (and, in turn, made those who criticised plans to introduce nationalised broadband look very foolish).
Cisco found that two-thirds (67%) of UK users want to see the government accelerate plans to improve broadband speed and reliability to ensure fast and reliable connections for everyone across the country.
“According to the global survey of almost 60,000 workers across 30 markets about their home broadband access, quality and usage, economic and societal growth will not happen without universal access to fast and reliable Internet,” says Cisco's report.
“Secure, high-quality, reliable internet is critical to make hybrid work successful,” added Jonathan Davidson, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Mass-Scale Infrastructure Group, Cisco.
“We are working closely with our global service provider customers to change the economics of the internet and help them reimagine internet infrastructure to make it better and more accessible to connect more people and businesses who rely on it.”
Broadband for All
Cheap and fast broadband should be something that every UK citizen can access, especially in the age when many critical services are moving online. While libraries and internet cafes exist, broadband has quickly become a fundamental utility and too many are being left behind.
The cost of decent devices, such as Chromebooks and Windows laptops, are rapidly dropping, but the missing piece of a decent connection to the internet.
“As of today, nearly half of the world still remains unconnected. The inability to connect those roughly 3.4 billion people over the next 10 years risks the effects of the digital divide becoming unrecoverable,” said Guy Diedrich, SVP & Global Innovation Officer at Cisco. “As business leaders and technologists we must help the rising tide of the digital age lift all ships; time is of the essence.”
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