Cisco released new findings from its latest Connected World study this week. The study surveyed the attitudes of 2,800 professionals and college students, 30 years old and younger in 14 countries.
A key finding was that 55 percent of college students and 62 percent of young employees said that they could not live without the Internet. “I thought the numbers would be higher,” Marie Hattar, vice president, Enterprise Marketing at Cisco told InternetNews.com.”I would have thought that people were much more connected.”
That said, respondents attitudes toward the modern connected world clearly showed how important connectivity has become. The study found that 64 percent of respondents would choose to have the Internet instead of car, if they were force to make a choice.
“This is how you get to know someone,” Hattar said. “The physical connection is not quite as big as it used to be.”
The influence of social networks was also shown by the report. The study found that 68 percent of those that used Twitter, follow a manager or their work colleagues. For Facebook users in the U.S., 40 percent of respondents friended their co-workers.
Hattar noted that the purpose of the study is to be an educational tool for organizations. She said that it should help to serve as a reminder that the consumerization of IT is a real thing and employers can’t ignore it.
The fact that personal and private life overlaps in the connected world emphasizes the need for proper policies in an organization. Hattar said that it’s important to have awareness and the right tools to help enforce policy.
That said the modern connected world poses a human challenge as well.
“There is both a social and a technology challenge,” Hattar said. “Cisco can help from a technology standpoint but technology can not stop you from you doing something stupid.”
Sean Michael Kerner is a senior editor at InternetNews.com, the news service of Internet.com, the network for technology professionals.
