While Work From Home (WFH) arrangements are increasingly becoming more numerous, a sense of caution needs to be sounded out. This arrangement may not be that beneficial for women, feel several researchers. For a start, the work and family conflict may now increase for women. This is because of societal expectations on women to take care of both work and family. Women could also be somewhat indirectly deprived of the usual access to informal networks or even from critical assignments. This was always the case, as most companies are male dominated. But this disturbing trend could further accentuate. A new form of “presenteeism” could arise. This is the concept where there is glorification of those who are working on- site or even travelling for work, in comparison to those who are engaged via a WFH arrangement. Women are quite likely to be more in the latter category, creating such indirect conflicts. As a solution to all this, companies need to stop making assumptions. Instead, they need to engage in deep data warehousing and subsequent analysis of the same. One needs to change with one’s culture, and not against it. Remote working does not happen within some sort of a vacuum. The concept of two tiers of employees needs to be stopped at all costs. Managers need specific corporate training to be educated about the new rules, including WFH etiquettes. The focus must ultimately be on the final output, and not other minor issues.

Source:https://hbr.org/2020/07/why-wfh-isnt-necessarily-good-for-women?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter_daily&utm_campaign=dailyalert_activesubs&utm_content=signinnudge&deliveryName=DM88528

Uploaded Date:04 August 2020

Facebook is one company whose talent management team has already outlined plans for remote working, not just for the present but indeed till the year 2030. The plan is that the remote working norms will continue well past the present pandemic, but will eventually cover about half of the company’s fifty- thousand strong workforce. Twitter has announced something likewise. While leading tech companies have devoted long hours and spent lot of money on improving the infrastructure at their office campuses, they are now realizing that employees can be equally productive from the comfort of their homes. Zoom meetings are proving to be as effective as face- to- face ones were. This raises questions on the viability of some of the newly opened mega structures such as Apple’s – The Spaceship- or Google’s ever evolving Googleplex. Microsoft’s Satya Nadella isn’t all that sure, as he feels that we shouldn’t incorporate any idea as a dogma. Humans and technology need to work as an interface. The technologies, resources and work norms will need to be worked out around the new reality. There may be four stages of progress in this. The first will be to design a corporate strategy that will work the best in the future. Then, the explicit as well as the implicit assumptions will need to be reconsidered once again. These will then need to be tested real time. Lastly, the lessons learnt will need to be incorporated towards the overall vision, so that the company’s system can pivot around the same.

Source:https://hbr.org/2020/07/does-your-company-have-a-long-term-plan-for-remote-work?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter_daily&utm_campaign=dailyalert_activesubs&utm_content=signinnudge&deliveryName=DM89014

Uploaded Date:04 August 2020

It is commonly understood that passion is a key requisite towards fruitful learning. Yet, a 2017 study on the US workforce revealed shocking business intelligence to all its readers, as it said that a mere thirteen percent of all employees displayed some sense of passion towards their work. The Deloitte Center for the Edge has identified three common traits visible among such people who display passion. The first of these is a long- term desire to boost one’s impact on any stream of work. Another is a constant disposition that views new challenges as the ideal platform towards one’s management training at a practical level. Such people also seek others as connections who will help address these concerns.

Source:https://hbr.org/2020/07/how-to-create-a-workplace-that-actually-inspires-passion?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter_daily&utm_campaign=dailyalert_activesubs&utm_content=signinnudge&deliveryName=DM89509

Uploaded Date:04 August 2020

As the business world is constantly working in time- starved environments, there is a need to have systems in place that will take care of this high intensity workplace. All nighters, work weekends and late stays have ensured that companies have turned the employees in to ideal workers, as sociologists would like to state. Digitization has further accentuated this trend as employees are expected to forever remain connected. Many employees have resorted to keeping their areas of passion as private. There exist three broad strategies that employees adopt under such stress. One is to be accepting. Another is to keep passing on the buck along the chain. In the first way, the employee accepts everything the employer wants, while in the second, he/ she tries to do so, but relents at times under extreme intensity. The third is the revealing variety, where employees openly crib about the deficiencies within the talent management system. To cope with such issues, employees need to develop a multi- faceted personality. Time- based rewards need be minimized. Employees’ personal lives need to be protected by all means, and this needs to be executed from the very top. While the work pressures are the highest ever, giving in is not a solution either, due to the related health and mental effects that can take place.

Source:https://hbr.org/2016/06/managing-the-high-intensity-workplace?utm_campaign=hbr&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

Uploaded Date:04 August 2020

New ways of working are being highlighted across reports by the business consulting giant BCG. One challenge is how to bring back managers to work. Another is on how agile can be transformed to uses beyond software alone. Performance also needs to be boosted using organization design. Digital transformation meanwhile, needs to be along the perspective of the people. Talent recruitment and its further development in the digital side is now a major concern. Another is on how to use purpose to transform the organization. Forthose corporate purposes that matter, companies need to properly measure. Finally, companies must get this that no digital- era change can take place without the people’s mandate.

Source:https://www.bcg.com/publications/collections/new-new-way-working.aspx

Uploaded Date:07 June 2019

In a survey held recently, about four- fifths of the CEOs in USA and Europe have confirmed that they are anxious about finding the right mix to thrive during the digital age. And this is true for across industries. Of course, companies will need more people who can design the right algorithms and data capture tools. Most important now however is talent management and retention. Instead of putting in a lot of effort in hiring new faces, the existing ones ought to be trained for the coming onslaught. A shift will now need to be made towards more cognitive and creative skills. Corporate training will now need to be provided for the right technical as well as soft skills.

Source:https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/preparing-for-the-coming-skill-shifts/

Uploaded Date:31st December 2018

There is a lot of fear- mongering regarding the impact that automation will have on the job market. A lot of this is founded on reality, but some of it may even be exaggerated. For instance, automation is not a new thing, but has in fact been going on for decades, and even centuries. In fact, the pace of change in jobs is less now than it was back during the 1940s and 1950s. Thus, there are some key questions, often overlooked, but which need to be asked to understand the actual impact of automation on jobs. The first such question would be, whether workers who will face automation blue, will be able to transition to new jobs. Another concerns the political ramifications. It is about the cost of automation and who will bear it. Automation could also affect the labour supply market. The fourth question to be asked is automation’s effects on wages and vice- versa. Business innovations will now also be needed in the job search market to match the new requirements by companies and the corresponding skills available.

Source:https://www.hbr.org/2018/12/5-questions-we-should-be-asking-about-automation-and-jobs

Uploaded Date:31st December 2018