The Virtual Work Force Factors
The Relationship Economy will facilitate rapid growth of the "virtual work" concepts and applications.
Consider for the moment what we have at our disposal today: 1) Unprecedented access to information and people 2) Technological communications tools that enable a virtual presence, audio, video and text 3) Collaborative tools for virtual group dyanmics and exchanges of information and knowledge 4) Mobile lifestyles exploding with integrated applications for virtually all things we need for working 5) Social networks which enable rich to resources and richness in terms of content and exchanges Now lets consider the personal stresses and collective cost of today's work environments: 1) Add individual fuel and repair cost of commuting and the related environmental cost 2) Stress of time to and from work as well as time away from our families 3) Personal cost for eating out, dry cleaning, parking, etc 4) Office cost for employers 5) The cost of employment fatigue and burn out syndroms on the job Studies on issues and outcomes of virtual work environments over the last several years showed the following preferences: Fueled by technological advancements, cross-functional collaborative teams and a competitive job market, alternative work practices (including virtual project teams, telecommuting and remote management of geographically dispersed employees) are helping to improve job satisfaction, save costs and boost corporate productivity.
1) More than two-thirds of American workers surveyed have engaged in virtual work 2) Nearly half (46%) are involved in virtual work at least once a week; 14 percent do so daily 3) 31 percent of those surveyed work in a virtual management structure, i.
e.
, their immediate manager or staff members are not located in the same office 4) 27 percent work for organizations with formal policies that encourage virtual work; and nearly half (48%) work for organizations that allow virtual work practices, even if no formal policy exists 5) The vast majority (91%) agree that virtual work saves their companies time and money The number one reason that professionals want to participate in virtual teams more frequently is simple: increased productivity.
As the size of the virtual workforce in America today is growing, so is the likely impact on productivity and profitability for organizations.
More than 90 percent of those surveyed agree (35%) or strongly agree (56%) that virtual meetings save time and money.
"We used to think that meeting face-to-face was the only way to build trust and teamwork.
Armed with new technology and new best practices, we're learning new ways to connect on a human level with people anywhere, anytime," said Dr.
Jaclyn Kostner, author of Virtual Leadership.
The number one reason that professionals want to participate in virtual teams more frequently is simple: increased productivity (cited by 32% of respondents).
As the size of the virtual workforce in America today is growing, so is the likely impact on productivity and profitability for organizations.
More than 90 percent of those surveyed agree (35%) or strongly agree (56%) that virtual meetings save time and money.
Tools of the Trade: Commonly used tools for virtual workforces include fax, cellular, intranet or extranet, online calendar or scheduling tools, paging, Web conferencing and videoconferencing, Skype, virtual collaboration rooms, B2B social networks among many others.
Global expansion means that many organizations are relying on virtual technology to hold board meetings or discuss major transactions, such as mergers and acquisitions, says Adam Gartenberg, a product manager at IBM, which has a number of real-time and team collaboration products.
"With employees working in different time zones, it's easy to refer to these virtual spaces for documents and time lines, rather than requiring employees to dig through their in-boxes," he says.
When you consider the current dynamics and emergence of social networking it doesn't take much of an imagination to envisions the convergence of collaborative technologies into personal network portals custom designed by individuals.
These personal network portals would provide new enhanced abilities for individuals personally and professional.
The benefits of a virtual work environment have already been illustrated and provided yet future technological enhancements will only accelerate benefits for all parties and organizations involved.
The Relationship Economy builds and enables value exchanges for all parties and ushers in brand new dynamics that will create even further value net defined.
What say you?
Consider for the moment what we have at our disposal today: 1) Unprecedented access to information and people 2) Technological communications tools that enable a virtual presence, audio, video and text 3) Collaborative tools for virtual group dyanmics and exchanges of information and knowledge 4) Mobile lifestyles exploding with integrated applications for virtually all things we need for working 5) Social networks which enable rich to resources and richness in terms of content and exchanges Now lets consider the personal stresses and collective cost of today's work environments: 1) Add individual fuel and repair cost of commuting and the related environmental cost 2) Stress of time to and from work as well as time away from our families 3) Personal cost for eating out, dry cleaning, parking, etc 4) Office cost for employers 5) The cost of employment fatigue and burn out syndroms on the job Studies on issues and outcomes of virtual work environments over the last several years showed the following preferences: Fueled by technological advancements, cross-functional collaborative teams and a competitive job market, alternative work practices (including virtual project teams, telecommuting and remote management of geographically dispersed employees) are helping to improve job satisfaction, save costs and boost corporate productivity.
1) More than two-thirds of American workers surveyed have engaged in virtual work 2) Nearly half (46%) are involved in virtual work at least once a week; 14 percent do so daily 3) 31 percent of those surveyed work in a virtual management structure, i.
e.
, their immediate manager or staff members are not located in the same office 4) 27 percent work for organizations with formal policies that encourage virtual work; and nearly half (48%) work for organizations that allow virtual work practices, even if no formal policy exists 5) The vast majority (91%) agree that virtual work saves their companies time and money The number one reason that professionals want to participate in virtual teams more frequently is simple: increased productivity.
As the size of the virtual workforce in America today is growing, so is the likely impact on productivity and profitability for organizations.
More than 90 percent of those surveyed agree (35%) or strongly agree (56%) that virtual meetings save time and money.
"We used to think that meeting face-to-face was the only way to build trust and teamwork.
Armed with new technology and new best practices, we're learning new ways to connect on a human level with people anywhere, anytime," said Dr.
Jaclyn Kostner, author of Virtual Leadership.
The number one reason that professionals want to participate in virtual teams more frequently is simple: increased productivity (cited by 32% of respondents).
As the size of the virtual workforce in America today is growing, so is the likely impact on productivity and profitability for organizations.
More than 90 percent of those surveyed agree (35%) or strongly agree (56%) that virtual meetings save time and money.
Tools of the Trade: Commonly used tools for virtual workforces include fax, cellular, intranet or extranet, online calendar or scheduling tools, paging, Web conferencing and videoconferencing, Skype, virtual collaboration rooms, B2B social networks among many others.
Global expansion means that many organizations are relying on virtual technology to hold board meetings or discuss major transactions, such as mergers and acquisitions, says Adam Gartenberg, a product manager at IBM, which has a number of real-time and team collaboration products.
"With employees working in different time zones, it's easy to refer to these virtual spaces for documents and time lines, rather than requiring employees to dig through their in-boxes," he says.
When you consider the current dynamics and emergence of social networking it doesn't take much of an imagination to envisions the convergence of collaborative technologies into personal network portals custom designed by individuals.
These personal network portals would provide new enhanced abilities for individuals personally and professional.
The benefits of a virtual work environment have already been illustrated and provided yet future technological enhancements will only accelerate benefits for all parties and organizations involved.
The Relationship Economy builds and enables value exchanges for all parties and ushers in brand new dynamics that will create even further value net defined.
What say you?
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