Working From Anywhere

Before COVID I was working when, how, and where I wanted. In the knowledge economy, I saw many others doing the same. Those with the in-demand skills continue to be catapulted lightyears ahead of those who don’t.

These were the hard truths three years ago when I first wrote this (and realities that continue to be exacerbated) :

• Learning and development programs that aren’t up to scratch
• Top talent chose to have more than one employer
• Organizations still fail to see people as their biggest asset
• HR professionals forget that HR is a marketing function that needs to authentically sell the company company
• The average company tenure of workers aged 20–24 has shrunk to just 16 months
• Bad managers destroy a sense of progress and meaning
• Our educational institutions are not preparing graduates for the skills needed for future
• The security that companies once provided has been exposed as a sham
• AI, automation, and augmentation make some jobs redundant and completely transform others
• Companies are not upholding their values and alienate a young workforce (that's endured both the Great Recession and COVID-19)

We need to take a new approach. We need to make better decisions that let our companies evolve into learning organizations. How a company treats its employees and customers goes well beyond Glassdoor reviews.

The new talent generation has endured crumbling credibility in every arena. Those who’ve managed to step into the ‘growth zone’ have and continue to flourish.

We spend more time at work than anywhere else. And now that also happens to be home. Maximizing employee value through superfluous means has gone the way of the dodo bird. Here’s what’s needed now:

• Learning opportunities to stretch and grow
• Challenging work that leads to skills development and flow-like experiences
• Freedom to design work to suit their life, not the other way around
• An ability to live and evolve values within dynamic environments
• Strong communication and collaboration habits
• A psychologically safe space to experiment and play
• The chance to follow one’s curiosity
• A sense of belonging and humanity

That’s only what I can think of for now. And it’s not unreasonable. The organizations that get this, aren’t trying to be perfect, they’re simply willing to grow better. Giving control to workers is the solution to our most foundational business problems.

You can sign up for my monthly digest right here.