New Workplace Trends & Technology

[Manila Bulletin WORK LIFE Column: published November 4, 2009]

Last October 22, I attended the 3rd HR Philippines National Convention where my good friend, business partner and Chief Training Consultant, Cindy Sajwani, gave a talk on “New Trends in Training & Technology.” There were about 700 HR practitioners who were present in the convention and discussions centered mainly on HR 2.0---how advancements in technology are redefining the workplace.

The convention confirmed the general feeling of today’s many Business and HR practitioners: that the world is changing and it’s doing so in a very fast pace. And as the business climate of today transforms significantly, so too are the prevailing culture and experiences in the workplace.

Technology is rapidly moving and it is up to you to ride on it or be left behind. Whether we like it or not, we need to be able to adapt in order to survive and even thrive. Here are a few workplace trends that you should prepare yourself for:

Millennial Invasion
Born between 1980 to 1995, “Millennials” are a new breed of workers who are rapidly taking over the workplace. They were raised by doting parents who told them they are special. They are tech savvy and have been exposed to all sorts of gadgets. They are very hard-working but they don’t necessarily adhere to strict and formal etiquette or policies that do not make sense to them. If you belong to an older generation, are you ready for this new generation? How do you deal with them and how can you ensure that you do not become obsolete?

Computer-Wired Workplace
Gone are the days of the typewriter, OHP projectors and Polaroid Cameras even though we may miss them. Nowadays, if your company wants to stay competitive, you should at least have a computer and DSL in your office. When our company invested in providing computers to all of our employees, we saw their productivity shoot up. More importantly, it empowered our employees so much so that they have all become single business units in themselves. The question is, how computer-wired is your workplace? Is it important in your line of business? And if you have a computer, are you maximizing its use?

Work Anytime, Anywhere
Laptops and the Wifi access in malls have allowed our management to work away from the workplace. Wherever I am, I can still monitor and communicate with my co-workers because aside from mobile phones and emails, we have an online forum and knowledge management system to keep track of all our business discussions, decisions and work progress. Not a lot of companies do this yet, because of the perceived high-cost of hiring an IT guy to set this up. But to be honest with you, it’s quite simple to set this up yourself. Just because, you are not an IT person, doesn’t mean that you cannot integrate technology to your work life. If we were able to do it, so can you.

Social Networking
Is facebook, friendster and multiply allowed in your workplace? If so, are you using it for business or for pleasure---be honest?! In our company, we do allow facebook and other networking sites because most of our clients communicate with us using those mediums. But I must admit, monitoring these activities is a bit challenging and it poses as a big temptation and interruption of work, sometimes. It definitely has its advantages and disadvantages. I believe that allowing its use is a prerogative of management. It depends on the nature of your business and the culture of your company. In your opinion, should your company allow employees to have access to facebook and other networking sites? And if you are allowed to access these, can you honestly say that you can use it for business purposes only and not abuse it?

Online Learning & Webinars
Company Trainings are not just focused on Instructor-led seminars anymore. Nowadays, a new training methodology is being utilized because many companies cannot afford to gather all their employees in one venue all at the same time to attend a seminar. A new trend is emerging in the form of Online Learning & Webinars. In our company, we use webinars for New Employee Orientation. Since new employees are not hired all at the same time, it becomes very tedious for management to keep on giving full Employee Orientations every time a new employee comes in. The solution, Interactive Orientation Webinars whereby employees learn about the company through an interactive multimedia and online quiz. The experience is quite fresh for many people and this makes it a little bit more exciting for the new employees. Have you experienced learning from webinars?

Online Resources
As technology speeds up the business process, so too are the demands of work. Years ago, it took weeks to come up with a project proposal, contract or report. Now, we are expected to deliver these within days or even a few hours. Work life can get really overwhelming. Luckily, technology also provides a solution through Online Resources. The internet has a lot of free stuff. All you need to have is the patience to sort through all of these. There are also products for sale out there that are useful. For instance, HR practitioners can now rely on www.InstantHRToolkit.com which provides them with over 100 downloadable, customizable and printable manuals, contracts, letters, forms and templates. Gone are the days where one has to create a document from scratch. There are shortcuts available and all you have to do is know how to use these online resources.

New Technology poses a lot of promising advancements in the workplace, but with it comes challenges. If used properly (just like what we have done in our company), it can truly make the workplace productive; if used unwisely, it can give you a lot of headaches and problems too. The important thing is to prepare yourself and dare to embrace change a little, because like it or not, it is transforming the workplace now.

Jhoanna O. Gan-So is the managing director of HR Club Philippines and president of Businessmaker Academy---a training company that offers public seminars on Human Resource Management, Business Skills and Internet Marketing. They also hold training programs for corporate skills training, as well as develop interactive webinars for corporations and institutions. To know more about these organizations and the seminars they offer, you may visit www.businessmaker-academy.com and www.hrclubphilippines.com or call (632)6874645. You may email your comments and questions to: mbworklife@gmail.com