The Millennial tide is rising, with the first wave of Generation Z workers joining the workforce for the very first time. Their ranks are set to swell further.
This brings a unique set of technological and cultural challenges which businesses need to act on now. If left unchecked, they risk losing an edge over competitors and it hampers their ability to attract the newest and brightest talent to their organisation.
However, one thing I find particularly fascinating is how businesses are rising to the challenges of integrating different generations into the workplace through technology.
We are seeing many mixing technological enablement alongside the required cultural changes needed to bring companies in line with new flexible working practices. This in turn can help create a more attractive environment for the younger generations.
The ability to access data, applications and people from every room, every desk and across any device, is an undeniable benefit. It enables all employees to be responsive and productive anywhere, while reducing the cost involved with delays, unnecessary travel, or scaling of expert resources.
It’s also important to remember that for many tech-savvy Millennial workers coming in to the workplace for the first time, email is old news.
They are far more comfortable with technology, mobile, chat and video than their predecessors. This also brings into question how security processes need to evolve in line with changing attitudes towards the use of technology.
With that in mind organisations need to adapt to these new behaviours, in order to guard against these threats appropriately.
On top of this, Generation Z doesn’t discriminate between work and life, and the technology they use has to run across both seamlessly.
Video is a key ingredient to enable this, something which was a particularly hot topic at this year’s UC EXPO. Plus, HD video is now available at a much lower cost than previously before. This means distance is no longer an obstacle, with high quality interactions able to take place regardless of employee’s location. Look at WordPress.com for example, which has enjoyed phenomenal success. A global tech company, its staff are 100% remote – and it means they are able to work across the world, while also instilling a fantastic culture.
Remote working creates a much richer and enjoyable experience for anyone using this collaborative technology, and that in turn fosters more widespread use across the organisation.
Another key ingredient to be thrown into the Millennial mix is BYOD, and this needs to be a critical consideration.
Research by YouGov has found we now average 7.4 devices for every household. With so many devices now in the palms of our hands, delivering a consistent experience across all of these devices is essential to ensure we drive real productivity benefits.
Organisations shouldn’t fear the rise of BYOD. Rather than thinking it’s too difficult or costly to implement, they should acknowledge and embrace it.
If not, there is a risk of having demotivated and disenfranchised employees, who won’t be as productive in the working environment and in some cases will choose to work elsewhere.
Technology has always been a great enabler; and at its best it is so integral and pervasive that it becomes indistinguishable from our everyday lives. As more and more devices become connected to the internet, and the popularity of wearable technology begins to influence our professional lives, the key is ensuring that all of these technologies work well together.
In my opinion, agility is key to business growth and development.
A comprehensive collaboration strategy not only enables companies and countries to drive greater team working and team effectiveness, but it successfully transforms customer experience too.
As the UK embraces the new digital era, remote working has the potential to truly transform the economy – and create the workplace that is truly ready for the next generation.
For anyone wanting to find out more about enabling the collaboration culture, this most recent Inside Cisco IT webinar offers tons of insight – as it gives a technical taster of how Cisco IT is powering the collaboration platform for its employees. The talk focuses on video conferencing for mobile and remote workers using a VPN-less solution to deliver a simple, seamless video collaboration experience for the user. Well worth a watch!
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