Firms are likely to increase investment in secure document storage as they grow their remote workforce.
Businesses may be encouraged to invest in electronic document storage as they increase their remote-working staff.
A new survey from global workplace provider Regus has suggested that the UK employment market is undergoing a substantial change, with more companies looking to take up flexible hiring strategies.
The latest Business Tracker report from the organisation shows that 31 per cent of enterprises plan to recruit more remote workers in 2011-12 and almost four in ten (39 per cent) intend to focus on increasing their freelance staff pool.
Such a change in the make-up of the workforce is likely to heighten the necessity for secure online document storage, to enable employees to access important data when outside the office.
And it is not just British firms that are changing the way they hire; according to Regus, "significantly greater proportions of international firms are planning to recruit flexible workers – freelance and remote staff".
Consequently, the need to invest in new technologies for information sharing and data management is even higher.
In a statement, Regus regional director Celia Donne explained: "Businesses are actively investing in their most valuable asset: people power.
"With 27 per cent of the employed population in the UK now deemed to be flexible workers, freelance and remote working are becoming an increasingly popular solution to increase headcount while remaining flexible and rapidly scalable."
Employees, too, appear to be interested in changing working patterns. Last month, a report from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation indicated that more people in the UK want to be able to work flexibly.
"There is a growing aspiration for more flexible working. One of the things that always astounds me is young people’s attitude to the world of work," chief executive Kevin Green said.
"What we’re finding is that there are more and more young people who are wanting to work in a flexible way."