ICT specialists crucial as 80% of companies still allow remote work

According to the results of the survey on information and communication technologies (ICT) usage and e-commerce in businesses in 2022, published on Thursday by the Cyprus Statistical Service, more than 80% of businesses with ten or more employees provided mobile devices with access to the internet and business email in 2022.

The survey looked at remote access for business employees, internet connection speeds, e-commerce, and the percentages of specialized ICT staff in businesses.

In 2022, 85.9% of businesses with 10 or more employees offered portable devices that enabled a mobile connection to the internet via mobile telephone networks for business purposes. According to the survey, 81.4% of all businesses provide remote access to their e-mail system, 68.7% provide remote access to the enterprise's documents, including spreadsheets, presentations, or any other files, and 64.8% provide remote access to the enterprise's business applications or software. Furthermore, 59% of all businesses have held remote meetings via the internet (e.g., Skype, Zoom, MS teams, WebEx, etc.).

Internet Connection Speed

According to the survey, the demand for high-speed internet connections (100 Mbit/s or higher) has increased significantly over the years. Six out of ten businesses (61.2%) will have internet connection speeds greater than 100 Mbit/s in 2022, up from 10.2% in 2018.

The most common contracted download speed among businesses in Cyprus was at least 100 Mbit/s but less than 500 Mbit/s (39.2% of all businesses), according to the data. The second most popular download speed was at least 30 Mbit/s but less than 100 Mbit/s (22.7%), followed by businesses with at least 500 Mbit/s but less than 1 Gbit/s and businesses with more than 1 Gbit/s (11%). Less than 30 Mbit/s was the least preferred download speed (8%).

E-Commerce Sales

During 2021, one out of every five businesses (22%) received orders for goods and services via computer networks, 21.2% via websites or "apps," and 3.3% via EDI-type messages.

Furthermore, 17.8% of all businesses received orders for goods and services through their own websites or "apps," while 11.9% received orders through e-commerce marketplace websites or "apps" used by multiple businesses to trade products. 19.6% of businesses received orders from private customers via websites or "apps," compared to 12.7% of businesses that received orders from other businesses and/or the general government.

Furthermore, 19.9% of businesses received orders via websites or "apps" from customers in Cyprus, 9.6% from other EU countries, and 8.2% from the rest of the world.

ICT specialists and skills

ICT specialists are employed by one out of every four businesses (24.5%). This percentage rises to 73.3% in large businesses and 20.1% in small businesses.

The percentage of businesses that provided any type of training to either ICT specialists or other employees to develop ICT-related skills in 2021 remains low, at 13.9% and 25.6%, respectively. The corresponding percentages in large businesses are 51.1% for ICT specialists and 65.7% for other employees.

Finally, 10.5% of businesses with ten or more employees employed, recruited or attempted to recruit ICT specialists in 2021, with 5.7% having difficulty filling ICT specialist vacancies in 2021.