The small and medium businesses (SMB) employees overwhelmingly feel that taking a holiday allows them to return to work refreshed, more motivated and ultimately more productive, according to a new HP survey.

The survey was commissioned by HP Middle East Imaging and Printing Group as part of its ‘Laser Jet Pays You Back’ campaign, highlighting the – often unacknowledged – value that its LaserJet printing range has been bringing to SMBs for over 25 years.

The survey, which covered 11 Europe and Middle East and Africa (EMEA) countries, was aimed at gaining insight into the increase in workplace efficiency that is generated by employees of SMBs after returning from a holiday.

“Here in Dubai, it is commonplace to enter a somewhat empty office during the summer months. HP’s survey was designed to analyse the effectiveness of the summer break, and the results speak for themselves: a break away from work rejuvenates and refreshes and thus increases productivity,” said Ernest Azzam, Laser and Enterprise Solutions business manager, HP Middle East Imaging and Printing Group.

'During July and August in Dubai, everyone tries to escape the desert heat. During the summer months, one becomes used to being greeted with the standard out-of-office auto-replies,' he remarked.

Indeed, 83 per cent of survey respondents totally or somewhat agreed that taking a holiday enables them to return to work more motivated than before and 57 per cent of respondents totally agreed that taking a holiday allows them to switch off completely and return to work refreshed.

As for the holiday itself, 26 per cent of UAE residents surveyed indicated that they prefer a ‘luxury’ holiday.

According to Dr Michal Bashshur, industrial organizational psychologist and assistant professor at Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona, Spain, taking a long break from work helps employees to lead a healthy and balanced lifestyle, essentially reducing the physical and psychological strain that is placed on an employee on a daily basis.

“Our jobs are becoming increasingly demanding due in part to the long hours we are expected to work and having to bring work into our home lives,” explained Bashshur.

“These high demands can cause psychological strain and depression, ultimately having a negative impact on productivity in the workplace. Taking a holiday has been shown to work as a coping mechanism that helps reduce depression and stress allowing employees to continue to cope with high job demands and be more productive when they ultimately return to work,” he added.

The wealth of research, including that commissioned by HP, confirms the powerful impact holidays can actually exert on the bottom line.

The implications from a business perspective are compelling and the same can be said of HP IPG’s LaserJet printing range – quietly, inadvertently helping businesses generate ROI for over 25 years, said Azzam.-TradeArabia News Service