The disruption caused by the COVID-19 outbreak has overhauled the corporate landscape and has led to major workplace transformations. A few years ago, we could never have imagined that the largest corporations of the world would be shifting towards establishing remote work as a norm for their entire workforce. In the last year, we have seen significant new work trends that otherwise would have taken a decade or more to become a norm.
While most businesses were at the forefront of preparing for a digitally advanced future with the adoption of cloud, mobile connectivity, artificial intelligence, analytics, and other technological advancements. However, the pandemic accelerated the adoption and implementation of these new technologies. And this acceleration will not only make sure business functions are performed smoothly in the short run but also stay prepared for any future uncertainties that may arise.
In these uncertain times, corporate officials have come up with new strategies and operations that have made it possible for an organization to run effectively. In this article, we’ll talk about a few of the future work trends that organizations have adopted or are in the process of adoption, post-COVID-19.
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Shifting to Hybrid Work Model
As businesses shift to a hybrid work model, where part of the employees work remotely while the rest work from the office, business leaders need to come up with strategies that’ll ensure productivity and efficiency regardless of where the employee is working from. This means businesses now need to use online platforms like project management tools, communication and collaboration tools, and tools that support knowledge sharing and searching information.Besides tools, there are several business strategies coming into play such as over-the-air deployment, remote support, application whitelisting, automating workflows and much more to ensure operational efficiency. Businesses also need to have a reliable internet connection like Spectrum Internet Español to make sure a consistent communication channel is maintained between remote and office workers.
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Increased Data Collection
As per a survey, up to 20% of employers are now using technologies like work computer usage tracker, virtual clocking in and out, employee emails, and virtual communication monitoring to monitor the performance of their employees. Some businesses may track employee productivity but some are now more focused on tracking employee engagement to get a better sense of employee experience.
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Flexible Work Hours
COVID-19 has introduced some positive work practices as well. Now, employers and employees work on a basis of mutual trust and respect. Since working in the office is not mandatory anymore, employers have relaxed restrictions and are even promoting flexible work hours. The traditional 9-5 is slowly coming to an end, which has given employees a chance to balance their work and personal life. Flexible work hours have also led to the enhanced mental health of employees and an increase in productivity.
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Virtual Meetings
Collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams and Slack have enhanced the effectiveness and productivity of working remotely. From meetings to stand-ups, these platforms have made remote working extremely easy for both employees and employers. Ideas can be exchanged, concerns can be addressed, and progress can be updated with the help of the adoption of these collaboration tools.
You can also do video conferencing if you want to give a meeting a feel of face-to-face interaction. Video conferencing tools like Zoom, Skype, and Google Meet have made it easy for organizations to have meetings with a number of corporate individuals. You don’t have to worry about cramming a chair into the conference hall. All you need to do is invite as many people as you want in a meeting and do a few clicks here and there, and you are good to start an elaborate video meeting with your fellow employees.
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Impact-Driven Work
Previously, the productivity of an employee was assessed by the amount of time spent on the desk, the breaks and leaves taken, and other aspects that were visually apparent to the manager. But when the work model shifted to remote working, things changed.
Managers and team leads can’t really see how an employee is completing a task assigned to them, so to measure the employee productivity they solely rely on results, which has also enabled them to truly measure productivity. This has given employees an opportunity to prove themselves without having to be supervised at all times. As it is a win-win situation for both the employee and employer, impact-driven work is the future of the corporate world.
To Sum Up
As impossible as it is to predict the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are some things that have become quite certain now. One of those certainties is that the new corporate world post-pandemic will not look anything like the old one.
As the pandemic changes the routine workplace practices, corporate officials need to elaborately analyze the impact of each new workplace trend and adopt the right technologies to support them.
