There's no telling how the new year will shape up for the business community, but one thing is clear: Technology will continue to offer new ways of accomplishing old tasks.
From an organizational perspective, companies have begun leveraging online learning programs and outsourced business services to train their workers and boost efficiency. Communications technology, such as social media and mobile phones, allow for decentralized or mobile workforces. And the very nature of commerce is expected to shift with the advent of mobile payment technologies and trends in m-commerce.
For employees, all of these trends point to the need for employers to rethink the typical 9-5 schedule. With remote work capabilities, employees are telecommuting part-time or full-time. Employers are hiring individuals through Skype video conferences and sourcing talent from all over the country. Experts believe this may mark a shift in traditional employee-manager relations, as well as traditional office processes.
"A myriad of things have combined to make it so that we can work anywhere, anytime (whether we want to or not): the internet, laptops, tablets, smartphones, apps, and software are the main culprits," writes Steve Strauss for USA Today. "I say culprits because some of this work anywhere, anytime stuff is great (checking emails while waiting at the airport) and some of it stinks (checking emails while on the beach in Hawaii.)"
And it's true. A remote workforce demands a new kind of business leadership, one that exists almost entirely through the cloud. With a growing population of telecommuters, managers need to find new ways to engage their remote staff. Contrastingly, employees who work through the cloud will face added challenges in establishing a work-life balance. Mobile devices and at-home workforces ensure that work is never far from view - a condition that may stress some home relationships.
"What does this have to do with connectivity and the future of work?" asks Jessica Stillman for the website GigaOm. "Simple: Constant connectivity and eroding work-life boundaries may be making it even more difficult for vacation-starved Americans (and even those in more vacation-friendly countries) to really get away."
Accordingly, managers need to set clear guidelines for their work-from-home policy. Similarly, telecommuting employees need to determine their own strategies for upholding a proper work-life balance.
Tags : Operating Agreements, Business Licenses, Corporate Bylaws
Posted: 01/03/2012