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magazine
11
The evolving workplace:
How technology is shaping the workplace
of tomorrow
The second
Global EvolvingWorkforce
Study
by Dell and Intel identifies six key
workforce/workplace trends that business
managers should be aware of if they are
to attract, retain and motivate employees
now and in the future. These are:
1
One Size Doesn’t Fit All:
Employees use
multiple devices to get their jobs done. Of
those who use desktops, more than half
also use another device. All of those who
use either a tablet or 2-in-1 laptop for
work always use these in conjunction with
other devices. Almost two thirds (62%) of
employees consider the desktop PC their
primary business device while at work. But
when doing work at home, laptops are
used as frequently as desktops.
2
The Office Is King:
The office still is
the primary place of work, with 97% of
employees spending some time in their
employer’s office. On average, employees
in developed markets spend 32 hours per
week in the office, compared to 26 hours
in emerging markets.
l
Globally, employees work an average of
four hours per week at an external location,
such as a client’s office, and another
five hours per week working from home,
compared with 29 hours per week working
in the office.
l
Office-based employees feel they work
best in an office, even though 48% say
they are frequently interrupted. Almost one
in five employees wears headphones or
earbuds in the office. More than half (51%)
frequently IM or email colleagues who are
located physically near them, rather than
talking with them directly.
agenda
3
OfficeWorkers vs. RemoteWorkers:
Perceptions of home working are shifting,
with 52% of employees stating that home
workers are just as productive, if not more
so, than office-based colleagues.
l
Of those who spend any time working
from home, half believe they are more
productive there than in the office; 36%
say they are as productive; and just 14%
say they are less productive when working
at home.
l
Home working has benefits for employees
too: 30% sleep more; 40% drive less; and
46% feel less stress. On the downside, 38%
of home workers snack more; 20% exercise
less; and there are more distractions from
spouses, children, parents and pets.
4
Work Life Blurs into Personal Life:
As
innovations in technology continue to
advance, people have more flexibility to
choose when and where they meet their
professional obligations. Almost two thirds
(64%) of employees conduct at least
some business at home after business
hours, especially in emerging economies
where 83% check work email after hours,
compared to 42% in developed markets.
l
The blurring of boundaries is most
pronounced amongst executives: they
use personal technology for work more
frequently than other employees (64%
vs. 37%); are more likely to take work
technology home for personal purposes
(45% vs. 20%); and are more likely to
access personal websites/apps/software at
work (67% vs. 49%).
l
More than half of employees globally
use personal devices for work purposes
or expect to do so in the future: 43% of
employees do so secretly without the
company knowing, with smartphones
and laptops being the tools used most
frequently.
5
Technology leads to Happy Employees:
One out of four employees globally
reports they are influenced by the
technology provided to them at work
and would consider taking a new position
if it provided better technology that
enabled them be more productive. Fewer
than half of employees globally report
that the IT department takes employees’
opinions into consideration when selecting
technology.
6
The Future of Tech is Bright, But Not
Fully Automated:
Employees are generally
optimistic about the future of technology.
They believe it will keep evolving and
continue to provide new benefits and
capabilities, but will not fundamentally
change the way in which they work.
l
They say that in the future, voice
recognition will be used instead of the
keyboard (92%), tablets will completely
replace laptops (87%), all computers will
use hand gestures (87%) and keyboards
and mice will be obsolete (88%). However,
advances in technology won’t replace the
need for humans in the workplace: only
34% of respondents think their job will be
fully automated in their lifetime.
Faced with these trends, Dell offers the
following advice to business leaders,
IT managers and human resource
professionals:
n
Activity-based work:
Provide the right
technology for the job, which might mean
supplying multiple devices;
n
Seamless Access:
Provide employees
with seamless access to their data and
applications from any device, anywhere, at
any time;
n
Security:
Don’t just ensure BYOD devices
are known and secured; make sure the user
and their access to information is managed
and secured as well;
n
Diverse Environments:
As innovations
in technology continue, people have
increasing flexibility to choose when and
where they work, so employers need to
provide tools that enable them to be
effective in their preferred environment.
For those who don’t need such flexibility,
provide a variety of workspaces to meet
the task at hand.
For more in-depth analysis, please review
the study in full at
evolvingworkforce
.
