Long gone the days where offices and workers are working in an office-centric workplace. Organisations today are dominated by technology and automation, making work and communication more agile. According to a report from Aruba, the use of technology, especially mobile devices, on a daily basis is unavoidable as it has become as much a part of our day-to-day routines as brushing our teeth and getting dressed.
Technology has also changed our roles and tasks in workplaces. For instance, in a workplace setting, the report on the importance of mobile devices to employee’s work lifestyle found that nearly 90 percent of respondents have two or more connected devices. This indicated that tech devices are affecting working hours and probably has shaped up for a generation of mobile-ready workers. In addition, almost two thirds (63 percent) of respondents think that their mobile devices help them manage their lives better.
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Aruba report presumed that it comes as no surprise that generations are embracing what makes life easier, the technology. At the same time, however, another study by Joyce Maroney and Julia Hobsbawm found that the increase in technology produces higher fatigue, burnout, and job insecurity. It also makes employees feeling the office-less world – a world where offices are making noise about technology whilst having less human interaction. There is no more always-on and always-in-the-office workforce.
In office-less matter, David Hansson, founder of Basecamp and author of “It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work”, as in SignalvNoise commented that it will be more complicated for leaders to manage the office-less world. Leaders should set new assumptions on who or how to manage more flexible work. The interesting and tricky part, Hansson added, is choosing a work pattern that suits both company vision and employees demands. There should also be diligence that put agile practices of an office-centric world applied to an office-less world.
Getting through this “tricky” situation, here are three tips that help.
As what Leonardo da Vinci said, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”. When everything seems complicated, simplicity should come and help. For example, you should limit the use of complicated group chat and pick up the phone or text someone directly, instead. For managers who come to audit a complex reporting system, practically use a quality face-to-face or voice-to-voice time to avoid misunderstanding and deliver a meaningful message.
Albeit technology is changing how we work today, the need for caring and people meetings remains important. Facetime and people interaction should not differ from before technology exists. Additionally, maximise the use of technology to solve pain points in the way your employees expect. For instance, you can use technology to cover free development program everyone can access while increasing motivation and engagement program. This way, the presence of technology is no longer a barrier communication but agile development within an organisation.
Surprisingly, generations want to be more tech-savvy but disconnected time is still preferred by most individuals. Aruba report showed that more than 60 percent of gen-mobile appreciates a disconnected time when they can disengage from their devices. This leaves opportunities for leaders to maximise their human interaction and strengthen relationships within teams.
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