In October, Dell and Intel introduced the "Evolving Workforce Study" at Dell World. The introductory report sparked discussion around how the workforce is changing and how IT will be called upon to adapt in order to support ever-growing employee needs.
The study boasts seven potential hypotheses related to new working practices, emerging approaches to measuring productivity, employee-led innovation, technology preferences and potential schisms between employers and employees as well as among different generations of workers.
Today we’re launching the second report which uncovers the workforce perspective of this study, following a survey of 8,360 workers from around the world. One thing is certain, the workforce is embracing the possibilities that technology can offer and will seek to drive IT consumerization even further in the future. Other interesting insights include:
- Emerging vs. developed: emerging countries appear to be more open to the changes driven by these key trends than their developed counterparts.
- Choice: a majority of employees around the world would enjoy work more and be more productive if they had a choice when it comes to workplace technology.
- Technology as a problem solver: most workers accept, and many are excited about, technology’s contribution to problem-solving and see its value.
- Flexibility: flexibility within the workplace when it comes to time spent can boost productivity.
- Outputs not hours: employees wish to be measured by their quality of work versus time spent in the office.
Technology will play a central role in solving and facilitating many of these issues, but solutions to these challenges will involve change at many different levels, not just within IT.
But what DOES this mean for IT? Our study draws on a number of issues associated with IT complexity – including security, data control, client deployment and management, back-end infrastructure support and many more. IT should assess their environments and develop strategies that enable new approaches to work which will ultimately allow organizations to become more productive and innovative and improve competitiveness.
If you’d like to learn more about how your workplace could change in the future, check out ‘Report 2: The Workforce Perspective’ below and read the results for yourself. I’d value the chance to hear your thoughts and how your organizations are addressing these issues.
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Also, look out for the third report in the series which will include commentary from a variety of global experts and their take on the survey findings.