Risky laptop antics

ALMOST 10 per cent of Australian workers have admitted to using the company laptop to download pornography. According to the study of such habits of 1,000 workers across the globe, laptop users are far more likely to take the risks associated with web surfing than desktop PC users. Results showed Australians ranked fourth in this field at 8 per cent, following US (20 per cent), UK (11 per cent) and Singapore (10 per cent). Australians also admitted to engaging in other high risk activities such as:

Using USB drives 78%

Internet banking 63%

Emailing confidential information 60%

Interestingly, 53 per cent of global respondents said they would blame their company’s security system if their identity was stolen on their machines. Others said they would blame the boss if work-related confidential data was stolen on their computer (64 per cent).

Source: Queen's University and SurfControl

Aussies to prep up for retirement

SIXTY per cent of Australians have plans to retire from the workforce. Despite this, the 1,741 respondents said they had only contributed the mandatory amount to their superannuation in preparation for their retirement. With this in mind, 28 per cent said they did not plan on retiring until between the ages of 61 and 65. Results showed females to be far more unprepared for retirement with only 48 per cent claiming they have gone above the mandatory contribution requirements compared to 62 per cent of males.

Source: Talent2

Execs claim to be the better boss

SEVENTY-THREE per cent of executives around the globe claimed they could perform their boss’ job better than their current manager. Sixty-five per cent of respondents from more than 70 countries revealed aspirations of moving into their boss’ role. However, results showed the performance of current bosses rated reasonably well:Furthermore, 65 per cent of the executives surveyed admitted to trusting their boss compared to only 35 per cent who did not.

Source: Korn/Ferry International

Global CEO turnover on the increase

LESS THAN half of CEOs left their offices under normal circumstances in 2006, according to a survey of the world’s 2,500 largest publicly traded corporations. Results showed that from 1995 to 2006, annual CEO turnover had grown by 59 per cent while performance-related turnover increased by 318 per cent. In addition, 13 per cent of departing CEOs were forced from office in 1995 compared to 33 per cent in 2006, who also left involuntarily. Twenty-two per cent of all CEO departures in 2006 resulted from mergers or buyouts. Meanwhile, the number of CEOs leaving because of conflicts with the board increased from 2 per cent in 1995 to 11 per cent between 2004 and 2006.

Source: Booz Allen Hamilton

IT professionals prove nosey

THIRTY-THREE per cent of IT workers revealed they take advantage of their access to company systems. One-third of the 200 people that took part in the survey said they abused the system by viewing the confidential information, including private files, wage data, and personal emails of their colleagues. In addition, the same amount of respondents said they could still access their company’s network even after they had left their current position. In addition, more than 50 per cent said they use Post-its to record administrative passwords, while 80 per cent of IT professionals store administrative passwords in their heads.

Source: Cyber-Ark Software

UK workers to get happy

TWENTY-FIVE per cent of UK workers have said they are dissatisfied with their office jobs. The survey, of more than 1,000 office workers found that nearly 70 per cent of lawyers claimed to be ‘very happy’ at work, compared to only 28 per cent of British IT and telecoms workers. Men also proved happier at work (28 per cent) compared to of women (22 per cent). Sixty per cent of respondents however, claimed they would prefer a female boss. The city of Bristolclaimed to have the happiest workers (59 per cent), followed by London (56 per cent).

Source: Badenoch and Clark

Financial services – a risky business

SEVENTY PER CENT of Australian chief risk officers and senior risk managers claimed they faced issues when managing operational risk. The survey of global financial services organisations revealed the following problems when it came to managing risks:

However, Australian financial institutions rated well when it came to market, credit and liquidity risk, these risk management processes ranked at 70–80 per cent in terms of effectiveness. Only 47 per cent of the global sample considered their institutions to be very effective in managing risks associated with business continuity and IT security

Source: Deloitte

Aussies no bludgers

THIRTY-SEVEN per cent of Australians did not use all of their annual leave over 2006 and 2007, following this was the US with a figure of 35 per cent. The global survey on holidays showed Australians receive the second-least number of holiday days each year, receiving an average of 18 days off. Those in the UShowever receive only 14 days a year. Research results found the French had the better deal, who on average, received 36 days a year. Britain was revealed as the most holiday-deprived country in Europe, with 24 per cent of employees failing to use all 24 days offered per year.

Source: Expedia

Stress levels increase for business owners

FORTY per cent of Australian business owners were revealed to be more stressed than a year ago. A survey of 7,200 business owners in 32 countries found that Australian business owners work the third-longest hours in the world, at an average of 56 hours per week. However, business owners in the emerging economies of India and Argentinawork longer hours than Australians. Increased stress levels were also reported in the following countries. On a global scale, business owners feel their stress levels have increased by 56 per cent in the last year. The average hours worked a week by business leaders around the world was 53.

Source: Grant Thornton