Digital disruption seems to be the buzzword of the year.
Regardless of how else it is described, the move towards a digital economy and
a digital workplace is changing the way teams are formed, operate and function.
It’s rare for a company in today’s economy not to have teams
all over the world. Having a team in the Philippines, another in Singapore and
various other staff members in other countries reporting to someone in Sydney
is not a proposition that is considered strange today. The days of all staff
operating in the same office are gone, as businesses attempt to get the most
bang for their corporate buck.
Developing a digital workplace is the way of the future. A
digital workplace is more than just a funky looking portal, or a collection of
state of the art apps. It takes as much commitment as the clunky old open
planned office of yesteryear.
Having a team of mobile workers, offshore workers, and
locally based staff provide a variety of issues for HR Managers.
American telecommunications company Verizon focused on
mobile services for its staff. They created an environment dedicated to content
and processes providing their staff with in-depth knowledge on what to expect
and what tools to use while they were out of the office. This created a
transparency for the staff, giving them access to data and knowledge regardless
of whether they were in the office or on the road.
Giving mobile workers higher levels of knowledge transforms
the traditional way mobile workers do business. Regardless of whether the
employee is one of 300,000 or a delivery driver for a courier company, having
direct access to important information empowers the employee. A digital
workplace effectively puts the business directly into the hands of the staff,
leaving less need for a centralised hierarchy of management.
While digital disruption changes not only the way we use
businesses as a consumer, it also how we do business as an organisation, it
remains important to remember not to turn your back on all the traditional
tools used.
Governance, strategy and measurements may seem to be almost
redundant in a digital workplace but they are essential if your organisation is
to continue to thrive. IKEA, one of the world’s leading brands, and a leader in
digital workplace adoption contribute their success in part to their focus on
culture, and insight as well as how the company’s focus on strategy, governance
and measurement. A digital workplace depends on the success of the apps and productivity
tools a company develops but without effective management and leadership there’s
no longevity.
Developing a digital workplace is no longer a “one day,
maybe,” proposition. As organisations such as Accenture (whose CEO now
considers it to be a virtual organisation), IKEA, Addidas, Adobe, EY, Verizon
and Coca-Cola blazes the trail in digital workplace adoption, the impacts of
digital disruption on traditional workplace models continues without pause.
The question we need to ask now isn’t “will we invest in a
digital workplace,” but “how long before our own digital workplace is ready?”
As the Australian Government talks up innovation as a main
priority, corporate Australia needs to realise they stand on the cusp of a
disruption to the way they do business larger than they’ve dealt with before.
Mike Cullen has recently returned to Akolade after a period as the
conference producer for one of Australia's leading economic think tanks. Mike
began working in the conference industry in 2007 after looking for a career
change from the high pressured world of inbound customer service.
Mike has
worked for some of the most well-known conference and media companies in the
B2B space and in his spare time is working on his first novel in a planned Epic
Fantasy trilogy. Mike’s first published work will be the short story Seeds of
Eden, in the Sproutlings Anthology scheduled for release in March 2016.
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