Use of flexible workers such as IT contractors can have help firms to reduce their overheads, it is claimed

Yet as well as reducing costs, hiring flexible staff will also improve the overall morale in the workforce, according to Orange.

It is therefore essential in the modern environment to ensure that businesses and managers embrace the practice and understand the positives it can bring, insists Max Taylor, Orange's director of corporate marketing.

"Setting up an employee to work from home needn't involve significant investment, just the willingness to give them the tools they need to get the job done," he said.

After all, flexible working doesn't just include people working from home, but also salesmen travelling the country and those who work outside of typical nine-to-five hours, Mr Taylor explained.

In survey of university graduates conducted by Orange, it was found that 53 per cent considered flexible working options to be an important aspect of their first job.