THE NATURE OF WORK worldwide is set to change more in the next decade than over the last 200 years, leading to global networks of people conducting business in a completely different way.

 

In the industrial and consumer economies the corporation (big business) and government held the power – companies decided what to sell and pushed this at a target market, competing ruthlessly with one another to capture market share.

 

In a digitised, networked and global economy, the consumer enjoys enormous choice and the means to switch allegiance at the click of the mouse. Consumers are now perceived by the corporate world as promiscuous.

 

According to Tom Friedman, author of The World is Flat, business has gone through three major phases:

• Between 1492 – 1800 countries globalised but businesses served primarily local, regional and national markets;
• Between 1800 – 2000 companies globalised and the economic scene was dominated by a small number of large multinationals 
• Between 2000-2040 a new phase began whereby individuals begin to globalise. The era of lifetime employment ended. The era of “globility” began. Work chases talent around the world – note: there will be some 60 million Ph.ds in India by 2010.

The reengineering of the 1990s lead to business process outsourcing – everything from call centre jobs, market analysis, data processing, is being sourced from outside the organisation and, often, outside the country.

 

Careers are dead – partly because traditional jobs are killing people. Perhaps the future looks more like Fractional Work? To learn more, download  Leon's article in Insight Exec here.

 

Only one in five employees within large corporations are satisfied and content – in this context, why bother with CRM technology?

 

The Future of Work

 

To compete in a global economy, most of us will become Emergent or Portfolio  workers – operating as either independent individuals (freelancers, emergent workers, portfolio workers) or owner-managers of MICRO businesses with less than 5 – 10 employees or associates.

 

Spherion reckon there are already 200 million portfolio workers operating world-wide.

 

Implications

 

For large companies – many will face a critical skills shortage over the next decade when baby boomers retire and there is an inadequate supply of suitably qualified, experienced personnel to take their place.

 

Companies of all sizes will find themselves competing for talent – not so much on the basis of what they pay, working conditions or growth but on what they value; what they “stand for”; their purpose and mission, as many workers start to put “purpose and meaning” ahead of salary and benefits.

 

For emergent workers – especially those new to this mode of employment – enormous adjustments will be necessary. They will find that they cannot go it alone. Projects require skilled teams of individuals with diverse, complementary skills, perspectives, approaches, and cultures etc. Individuals will need to “search and discover” compatible talent and “hunt in packs”.

 

The services that were undertaken by entire companies will now need to be performed by individuals on their own behalf – branding, marketing, selling, closing, delivering the product or service, invoicing, quality control, customer relations, accounting, legal, health and safety. Will this prove too burdensome?  If corporates think they are stressed, wait until they experience portfolio working. Who pays for sick leave?

 

Income variability – a euphemism for the phenomenon experienced by portfolio workers as “feast or famine” will create its own stresses and problems.

 

For the broader community - how will government respond to a workforce made up of portfolio workers, entrepreneurs, and micro enterprises? Will they adjust the National Insurance scheme and tax regimes to assist as opposed to penalise those who assume responsibility for their own destiny? Will banks and insurance companies and other members of the financial community adjust their products and services to a group of people who can go from rags to riches and back to rags again in the space of months? What are the implications of “globility” – the tendency for individuals to migrate anywhere in search of short term contracts. Which tax regimes, health and safety legislation, employment standards apply? What are the implications of homeworking for health care, health, safety and security??

 

Leon Benjamin, author of Winning By Sharing, and Anna Pollock a 30-year veteran of self-directed, self employment and co-founder of DestiCorp Ltd a thought leader in the travel and hospitality industry, have profound, experience, insights and knowledge of the Networked Economy and a number of practical suggestions for the companies and individuals who are being affected by this deep change. 

 

For more information on this topic and to find out how to engage Leon and Anna to learn more, please contact us at anna@businessforgood.biz.