New research
released by Hola highlights the fact that
professionals who work remotely outside of their home countries have an
overwhelming desire to access content from their home nations, but fewer than a
fifth (17%) were able to identify a preferred tool with which to do so. This
underscores the need for providers of both content and web access services to
educate the market on the availability and benefits of tools that open borders
to content for expatriate workers. Further, companies who allow or encourage
remote work must educate themselves to ensure the access needs, wants, and
requirements of their employees are met.
"The new
reality of employment is that remote work in many industries is here to stay,
and while borders for productivity are being broken down, most workers still
see the borders for internet content as an obstacle"
The study,
carried out by leading market research firm Vanson Bourne on behalf of Hola, gathered
insights from 1000 workers from the United States and United Kingdom,
representing a variety of industries led by retail, the public sector,
financial services, and technology.
Online content
access tools have become increasingly important as remote work grows in
popularity and more workers spend time outside of their home country. According
to the research, 85% of respondents spend an average of 21 days (about 3 weeks)
abroad each year, and many of them for longer periods. In the study, 94% of
respondents stated that it is important to have access to web content from
their home country, with a similar number (90%) specifically citing the
importance of remote online tools to access this content, and 88% reporting
they feel comfortable using remote access tools for browsing. This, along with
the small number of respondents who could identify a preferred tool, highlights
there is an unmet need among remote workers for content and web access.
"The new reality of employment is that remote
work in many industries is here to stay, and while borders for productivity are
being broken down, most workers still see the borders for internet content as
an obstacle," explained Avi Raz Cohen, General Manager at Hola. "These new
types of workers clearly want to be able to use the internet in a borderless
manner as they work and are willing to use the tools available to them. There
is a wide group of these digital nomads ready to use web content tools, and we
at Hola are proud to provide the best tool in this class. We look forward to
closing the gap between the desire to access borderless online content and the
current adoption rate of the tools supporting these workers, wherever they
decide to set up office."