Executives see daily commute as major productivity drain

Corporate executives globally regard their daily trip into and out of the office as a drain on productivity, according to latest research by workspace provider Regus. This "limbo" of time, mainly seen as neither productive work time nor enjoyable personal time, is widely regarded as an obstacle to more useful or entertaining pursuits.

Among respondents in India, 29 per cent said it is a pointless, undefined time, while 26 per cent branded it as a "waste" of their precious time. Thus, for well over half of business people globally commute time could be re-invested in more productive work or in enjoying a few hours more sleep in the morning. Nineteen per cent regard their commute as personal time, as they can read and catch up on news on smartphones. "Savvy businesses wanting to restore productivity and reward workers with more personal time or simply with a lie-in once in a while would do well to allow employees to work closer to home at least some of the time," said Harsh Lambah, country manager, India.