THERE IS A large gap between what bosses in Ireland believe about how much flexibility and control their employees have over when, where and how they work and what the employees themselves actually think, according to a new study by Accenture Ireland.

Where 86% of leaders believe employees enjoy that flexibility, only 27% of employees say they agree.

Similarly, over three-quarters of leaders (78%) feel they create empowering environments where people have a sense of belonging. Only one-third (32%) of employees in Ireland said they agree.

Accenture published the report to coincide with its annual celebration of International Women’s Day at the Convention Centre in Dublin today.

The report highlights that employees in Ireland feel much less safe in raising a sensitive issue than their leaders believe.

Nine in ten (90%) leaders believe their employees feel safe enough to be open about a disability, but only 70% of employees agree.

And, while 85% of leaders feel employees would be fine to raise a concern about their mental health, only 60% of employees feel the same.

Its report also claims that if leaders’ perceptions were to align more with what their employees think, it would yield a number of benefits.

For example, if that perception gap was halved, the proportion of women who aim to reach a leadership position in their organisation would climb to 49%.

Accenture’s Alastair Blair said the closing this gap starts with employers realising there is one in the first place.

“It is an opportunity for leaders to connect with and involve their people — to truly understand how they feel at work,” he said. “Based on what matters most to their people, leaders can prioritise and take action to close the gap, accelerating true equality for all in their organisation.”