Flexible working may be a significant factor in attracting key employees, but just over half of all businesses do not intend to offer the arrangement to staff, a new survey found.

According to research carried out for Citrix Ireland, the reluctance to adopt flexible arrangements, which would allow employees to work outside the office, is primarily due to a loss of control. Some 73 per cent of businesses taking part in the survey said they did not support mobile working or flexible arrangements, and 57 per cent said they had no intention of doing so.

Some 40 per cent of respondents cited a loss of control as a deterrent to new ways of working, with others citing a lack of budget, concerns over productivity and confidentiality of client information.

However, of those who do plan to bring in flexible working, the potential to save costs is a motivator for 57 per cent. “The good news is that the technology is now in place to address many of these concerns and create a new more effective way of working,” said Grace O’Rourke Veitch of Citrix.