NBN could revolutionise business: Conroy

Businesses must change their attitudes about people working from home and use the internet to connect employees through "telework"

Australia is lagging behind other developed countries in harnessing the internet for business and needs to catch up, the federal government says.

Businesses must change their attitudes about people working from home and use the internet to connect employees through "telework", the minister for broadband and communications Stephen Conroy said.

"In Australia the number of people with an arrangement with their employer to work from home has been low by international standards," Senator Conroy said at a Telework Forum in Sydney on Tuesday.

"According to the ABS, just six per cent of employers from Australia have reported having any kind of telework arrangement with their employer.

"In the USA 10 per cent of USA employees telework at least one day a month and eight European Union countries reported that more than 10 per cent of workers involved in telework a quarter of the time or more and that was in 2005."

Senator Conroy continued his sell of National Broadband Network (NBN), promising the high speed connections would "potentially revolutionise" business.

By connecting workers from home, employers could tap into skilled workers from across the country, improve work life balance and potentially reduce absenteeism, he said.

"The delivery of reliable high speed broadband to every Australian premise will potentially revolutionise how we will work.

"It promises to transform who is able to work, when you can work, where you can work and how you can work."

The comments follow the launch of Deloitte Access Economics' report that the internet made a direct contribution to the Australian economy of $50 billion, which is almost on par with that of the retail sector or Australia's iron ore exports.

More about: ABS, Access Economics, etwork
References show all

Comments

1

Laz Bne

Wed 03/08/2011 - 13:43

"potentially revolutionise" business.

What would Conroy know about business? He and his mates seem hell bent on distroying it here in Australia.

2

K Deem

Wed 03/08/2011 - 14:46

@1,

And failing to accepted or understand a shift globaly is also as bad for a country in failed and missed opportunities, your arguement cuts both ways.

I say Conroy will end up creating more jobs in 10 years than all the mining companies.........

I hear an intake of breathe, a prelude to a rant, well pause a second and think on this, mining jobs will be going over to NBN enabled companies joining the already growing crowd of computer operators in Perth who over 1000 k,s away are drinving trucks and operating mining machines, that is a small glimpse of the future get used to it.

3

Paul

Mon 29/08/2011 - 21:26

Stephen should lead by example and mandate permission for Telework by staff of APS agencies.

Starting with his own of course ;-)

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