68% people use 1 smartphone for both work, personal use: Google

Nearly 68 per cent of employees use one smartphone for both work and personal purposes while 32 per cent use two smartphones, though not always simply one for work and one for personal use, a Google-led study has revealed, as a large percentage of mobile workforce continues to work from home.

Across the various user groups surveyed, 70 per cent said they would prefer a user interface (UI) on their phones that clearly separates work and personal apps and data, over a UI with no separation.

"Users mentioned that a clear delineation between work and personal apps and data can help them improve digital wellbeing and balance between their personal lives and their work," said the Google study done along with experience management firm Qualtrics.

Nearly 85 per cent of employees use at least one smartphone for both work and personal use.

"With the increase of workers at home, and a large number of companies announcing hybrid work plans, employees are increasingly juggling work and personal life on a single device. Many are struggling to find the right balance between creating separation of work-life balance and maintaining privacy," Google said in a blog post on Thursday.

The data showed that work profile users (81 per cent) are more satisfied than non-work profile users (71 per cent) with their experience of managing work and personal life on the same device.

When there is a distinct separation between work and personal apps, people are more conscious about their data and the boundaries they can and cannot cross.

Work profile users are more aware than non-work profile users that the data linked to their work account can be seen by their company and more satisfied that their work data can be kept secure.

For example, 63 per cent of work profile users are aware that work app usage (data captured on work apps) is visible to IT, compared to only 39 per cent of non-work profile users who also use work apps on their phone.

"Our study shows that work profile users are significantly more satisfied with their work-life balance compared to non-work profile users," Google said.