VMware’s New Way of Life Study indicates a growing trend of “work lives”’ and “personal lives” being merged into one, particularly amongst the millennial generation

There is a need to find the right balance between policies and how employees prefer to work. With a growing number of personal devices being used at the workplace, dealing with IT has emerged as the most stressful issue at work for young employees in India according to research commissioned by VMware, the global leader in virtualization and cloud infrastructure.

A majority (75%) of the respondents to the survey in India were Millennial, or Generation Y, workers who were born between the year 1980 and 1995. The 2nd annual ‘New Way of Life Study 2013,’ conducted across 12 countries in Asia-Pacific, found that while a large number of employees (85%) in India are provided with a portable device from their employer, a growing number (81%, compared to 77% last year) are bringing their own device to work to help them complete their tasks. The study revealed that Indians find dealing with IT issues (40%) is far more stressful than dealing with bureaucracy (35%) or their workload (31%).

The Generation Y workforce is increasingly bringing their own devices to the workplace to be more efficient (81%) and using their preferred IT tools to handle stress (69%). In fact, 78 percent claim to be happier in their role when they are allowed to use a device of their choice. Last year, 72 per cent claimed to be more productive and 70 per cent happier when allowed to use a device of their choice – showing improvements in productivity and happiness with the blurring of work and personal life enabled by technology. Another key trend uncovered in the study was the merging of separate “work lives”’ and “personal lives” into one, particularly among the “Millennial” generation in India.

The survey revealed that respondents were willing to let work intrude into what was once deemed as personal time, with 81 per cent of the respondents working from home, 71 per cent on holidays, and 57 per cent while on the road. “The market for end user devices is growing and changing rapidly today, and India is no exception. Over the last year, we’ve seen new products and categories emerge which are presenting unique complexities and risks  for organizations who want to protect their company data and avoid the leakage of confidential information,” said Vinod Krishnan, Director – Advanced Technologies, VMware India & SAARC. “The research results highlight the pressing need for organizations to change and find the right balance between policies and how employees prefer to work. “Continued investment and innovation in end-user computing by companies like VMware, are helping IT organizations free the desktop, redefine the corporate workspace and embrace a new way of working in the post PC era,” he added.

Of the respondents bringing their personal device to the workplace, 52 per cent said that they were getting support from IT for their personal devices, and 73 per cent said that they would spend - or waste - time working out a solution on their own if IT did not assist them. When evaluating potential employers, 80 per cent of the respondents (compared to 70% last year) believe that the ones who offer technological freedom are more progressive, dynamic, and desirable to work for.

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VMware began an annual “New Way” consumer study to identify changes in end-user computing trends and to use those insights to prepare IT departments for the future.  In 2012, the study was called the “New Way of Work” and demonstrated the BYOD phenomenon as a significant trend in the Asia Pacific region. In 2013, the results of the study indicate that the lines between work-lives and personal-lives are no longer discreet and the study is titled the “New Way of Life.”  The summary of the study delves further into the personal lives of end-users to determine the expectations and preparedness measures required of the new work force. The VMware New Way of Life 2013 study was commissioned by VMware and conducted by Acorn Marketing & Research Consultants.