Chapter 10
Future-Proof Workplace
Waves of Change
We must each lead our organizations, and ourselves, based on the reality of where we are today—not where we hoped to be. Leaders must have the courage to face reality and take action.
—Linda Sharkey and Morag Barrett
They say the sense of smell is strongly connected to memory.
This probably explains why we can still remember our most recent cab ride, even though it was years ago.
The cab was called the day before to schedule an early pickup to the airport. The taxi pulled into the driveway right on time. As we squeezed into the backseat, several things stood out.
First, the plexiglass barrier between the driver and us seemed excessive and made it difficult to communicate. But we needed to catch a flight and had no other options. Prisoner transport would have to suffice.
The second thing we noticed about the culture of this rolling workplace was that there was plenty of legroom—for the driver, anyway. After all, he had to be in the car all day and needs to be comfortable.
Then there was the memorable smell of breakfast and lunch. And the aroma of an exhausted industry about to be passed by.
Reflecting on the current state of affairs of universal taxi experiences, Uber seemed to be worth a try for the next trip to the airport. The driver pulled up on time in a clean and fresh car with a bottle of water in the backseat. It felt like being driven by a chauffeur. A very different experience indeed. Needless to say, taxis are out and Uber is in.
Please don't misunderstand—we've met some wonderful cab drivers over the years and in many different countries. The point is that seemingly out of nowhere, the taxi industry has competition, and you and I have options. This is another example of an institution failing its people.
Uber feels different, in our experience, anyway. It disrupted the market like it was standing still. Because the market was standing still.
Have you even stood in knee-deep water at the beach, breathing the salty air, only to be knocked over by that wave you didn't see? That must be how the cab companies felt.
And the response from the taxi industry has been fascinating. In general, its first reaction was denial, followed by demands for more government regulation to quell what it viewed as unfair competition. A typical twentieth-century reaction to change.
Instead of taking a hard look at how customers viewed its service and brand—and making adjustments—it fought to keep the status quo. The modern day equivalent of throwing a clog in the loom. The taxi industry chose to look for ways to force people to use taxis and attempted to get rid of Uber and other such disrupters through legislation and strikes. And frankly, the industry was slow to take action until it was too late. The disruption was the new normal.
The Human Wave
Others often look at disruptive companies like Uber as tech companies, whereas we like to look at them as human companies—focused on using technology to create win-win relationships and solutions for customers. They aren't simply focused on the digital interface and connecting systems, processes, and customers in a new way. They are also focused on the human interface, the customer experience.
Customers are people, by the way. Everyone in business needs to be reminded of that regularly—us, the authors, included.
Employees and colleagues are people. So, too, are vendors and cab drivers. Change often feels threatening, and when our livelihoods are threatened, we can often react with a fight or flight response. Helping people to navigate the waves of change is our role as leaders in the twenty-first century.
This practice requires intentional effort and in some cases a real shift in mind-set. We must pay attention to the human element of change and not have our heads down in the sand—or in our devices.
The waves of change are always driven by human desire. These waves will keep breaking on the world of work, with increasing speed and force. The factors we've brought to light are not just tides that come in and go out, leaving everything as it was. These six factors are transforming the landscape, and they will transform your workplace.
As leaders, your company and career can be wiped out by change. Or you can ride the wave.
But there's a third alternative. You can be the wave.
Leading the Future
Do something. Make waves. That's what leaders do.
Great leaders don't just agitate for the sake of making their presence known. They make positive waves of change that ripple throughout an organization.
We suggest the first step is to take a hard look at your leadership results—both in leading yourself and leading others. Are you a leader who believes you have all the answers because you have so much experience? Do you believe that you have to tell people what to do or they won't get it right?
If this is what you discover, you're in the leadership riptide, and you must break free if you are to survive.
Fast data and almost-instantaneous market feedback mean that leaders will be under more scrutiny than ever. What does honest scrutiny of your company and yourself reveal? Where does change need to occur? Where are you stuck in the twentieth century?
Leaders must have a clear set of guiding values and purpose for the twenty-first century.
We want to remind you again about our friend Walter McFarland and what he said about great leaders. He shared that they have three things in common. “The first big theme was passion,” he told us recently. “When you read the statements of the people who accomplished the most, it didn't happen by chance. They didn't achieve because they were obsessive or compulsive. They did it because they cared about it, right down to their very DNA.”
The second thing he shared was that great leaders “seemed consistently able to attach whatever their task was to that higher purpose. It was about changing something in a bigger and better way. It was about the opportunity for people to engage and make a real difference in the makeup of their organizations.”
And the third piece was that “somehow, in the midst of doing these global, galactic big things, they found time to develop people. They did that without exception.”
We believe the future will be built by leaders who build up others and have a heart to serve others. It might be time for you to ALTRR your leadership behavior after you have made serious examination. What does ALTRR stand for?
- Ask for ideas, input, and suggestions. Dig deep to gain understanding of different views.
- Listen and learn from the responses.
- Think about what you have heard, and formulate some conclusions regarding your purpose.
- Respond to others with what you believe is right, and engage them in the response.
- Repeat this approach as a way of tapping into the power of perspective, and make it a habit—a cultural cornerstone.
ALTRR will open your eyes to better ways of doing things before you react with a twentieth-century response.
Culture Determines Innovation and Speed
Culture is not what you hope employees, clients, and communities think about your company—it's what they actually think.
Having an outside-in, customer view is essential. This perspective makes your company the wave—and keeps you from being knocked over by another wave. This is what keeps a culture fresh, flexible, and innovative.
Change is required, yet change exposes cultural problems that nobody talked about before. That's why mergers are often so tumultuous—all the unspoken rules suddenly collide.
If you want to grow, you have to understand what your culture really is, not what you wish it to be. Some leaders won't do that. Those leaders won't survive. And whether or not you have “leader” in your job description, you're a leader.
You know there's an intangible factor that needs to be made tangible: culture. The difference between success and failure is people who are willing to wrestle with culture. Will you be one of those people?
In reading this book you know that corporate culture impacts just about every aspect of your organization. It dictates how you behave, decide direction, teach and learn, organize your office space, and leverage technology. Culture can either constrain or unleash you.
It's time for the elephant in the room to be escorted out by security.
It's not about the slogans and values statements but how those values statements are put into action in everyday decisions and everyday behaviors.
We believe the future will be built in company cultures we love.
Navigating with Purpose
Your company needs clear purpose. Purpose is the wind in your company's sails. And arriving on that clear purpose requires a view toward the future. Is your purpose noble and helping mankind? Or are you still in mourning for the “good old days” and trying to hang onto the past? Are you and your company primarily driven by financial goals?
In this case we'll break our no-crystal-ball rule and say it's easy to predict which kind of companies will be thriving in a decade.
A workplace needs a human purpose, derived from human needs and values. Beyond profitability, what drives your organization and you, personally? Is your organization's purpose future-proof?
Tap into that deep current and let purpose guide future decisions and initiatives. When you define your purpose, as a company or an individual, you create a barometer to judge your decisions.
The twentieth century engaged the mind—the logic of supply and demand, being first to market, the bottom line. Success in the twenty-first century goes deeper, it goes broader, to engage not just our minds but our hearts.
A purpose with passion inspires everyone to go the extra mile to deliver an exceptional experience for their customers, internal and external. It makes every employee, whether they are cleaning the bathrooms or setting policy, understand the greater good they are creating.
We believe the future will be built by purposeful individuals.
Our Relational Future
Business is personal.
How many billions of dollars in business transactions are secured, or lost, because of the quality (or lack thereof) of personal relationships? On a geopolitical scale, we can measure the effect in trillions of dollars and sadly, in life-and-death struggles.
Damaged relationships damage bottom lines.
Sure, we can yell at Siri or kick an ATM and they will continue to dutifully follow their programming, however flawed. Assembly line workers can curse the robots, but those machines will keep on welding. But just as customers are human, so are you and your colleagues.
Relationships matter. We sometimes forget that in the busyness of business.
If your core belief is that “business is business,” you will probably have an unconscious belief that there are a different set of rules for colleagues than for personal relationships. Those lines are not only blurred, they disappeared decades ago.
You cannot be successful in business, or in life, unless you are successful in cultivating winning relationships. This has always been true and is especially true in the twenty-first century.
We believe the future will be built on Ally relationships.
Future Inclusion
Diversity is not the goal. Diversity can be measured and achieved through percentages.
Inclusion is an attitude, a worldview, not a number. And we all fall short to some degree.
If you agree, the place to start future-proofing your company is to avoid the temptation to pat yourself on the back because of numbers, and open your heart to look for hidden bias.
This entire book could be viewed as several possible initiatives, or checklists, for your company. But in reality, every chapter is geared to this goal: putting heart back into your work.
Anything that hinders healthy collaboration hurts us all. What solutions have eluded humanity because we haven't connected on a more human level? What possibilities become real when we break down barriers and unify with a common purpose?
We believe the future is inclusive.
Resistance Is Futile—Technology
Let's be clear about our vision for the future of work. It is not a scene from The Matrix, with humans tethered to machines, all working for the good of some unknown entities.
Ironically, the digital revolution is placing the human side of business at the forefront. The more technology we possess, the more our need for human connection becomes apparent. And, the more we can choose to use technology to enhance communication, the better our working relationships will be.
Every business is now a digital business. Yet the future of work can, and must, have a heart.
Technology is the primary impetus for a major shift to shape how work gets done and careers evolve. Shiny objects are engaging, but shiny objects that take communication and human connection to another level are game-changing.
In our experience, successful leaders are those who balance not just the what of technology but also the how, the who, and the where.
We believe the future will use technology to enhance our humanness.
Curious Learners
Education desperately needs to be future-proofed.
If a job requires a four-year degree, by the time a candidate completes the coursework that job and the entire workplace landscape will have changed dramatically.
What if we had the courage to question educational norms (yes—all of them), and leveraged technology to make learning practical?
On a personal level, we must also embrace the fact that each of us has a personal responsibility to nurture our curiosity and to be lifelong learners. What are you doing to learn valuable skills that will future-proof your career?
As managers, leaders, and HR professionals, we must face the inherent bias we have toward some institutional educational models and be willing to embrace pragmatic solutions to empower our workforce and future-proof our companies.
We believe the future needs new ways of teaching curious learners.
The Future-Proof Workspace
Instead of thinking a vibrant company culture can be built with a new color of paint and fancy desk chairs, understand that a workspace is the reflection of culture.
In other words, foosball and fireman poles are only a temporary distraction, unless the changes reflect an authentic expression of purpose and values and are evidenced by how we treat each other.
We believe the future workplace will be a community not a cubicle farm—a place where people truly engage, interact, and respect each other for a greater common good.
Work Matters
We spend a large portion of our existence at work, thinking about work, stressing about work.
While the average workweek is supposed to be 40 hours, for most of us the reality is 60 hours or more. We plan our lives around work, and for many of us work is the focal point around which everything else revolves—including personal relationships. Work can be a creative outlet and a healthy challenge.
Work is clearly a big deal. And yet work gets a bad rap. We complain about the Monday morning blues, hump day Wednesday, thirsty Thursday, thank goodness it's Friday (a.k.a. POETS day: Pop Off Early, Tomorrow's Saturday). Not sure what we should be griping about on Tuesday.
And yet we all still need to work. Left to our own devices we like to produce, create, and contribute. But the nature of work is changing. Work will become more egalitarian, with everyone valued for what they contribute to the common good and not how high they are in the corporate hierarchy.
Much of what we experience today and know as “work” is rooted in the methods and philosophy of the Industrial Revolution. But we are no longer in the mechanical age; we are in the midst of the digital and human age.
It's time to retire the whole work/life balance debate. It was a ridiculous concept in the best of times; today, the premise of all work with a little dash of life no longer sits comfortably.
Instead, let's all embrace life, with intermittent bursts of work and productivity!
They are forever interconnected. One does not happen without the other, but if we embrace flexible working and family-friendly policies, why not go all the way and actually embrace employee-friendly policies? If we will, work can become someplace where we want to be, not where we have to be—a place that helps us to thrive, contribute to the organization's purpose, and leave a legacy that benefits all.
- What does this mean for the future of work?
- What are the new skills that will be needed?
- What skills may become obsolete?
- Are you going to have a robot manager?
- Will you supervise a robot team?
- When and where does your work need to occur?
- How will you braid your work and life so that it is seamless and adds the value you need?
- Work matters, but the question is, does your work matter?
- Business matters, but will your business matter next year?
Tidal Waves
Raise is tapping into an estimated 80 billion dollar market allowing shoppers to buy or sell unwanted gift cards—without owning any retail space.
Airbnb has more rooms available than the largest hotel groups in the world. All with a core staff of fewer than 1,000 employees and without owning any real estate.
Beepi is transforming the used car market, inspecting the car—at your home—and then introducing buyers and sellers without the need for a garage forecourt or a visit to the local car dealership.
Uber has more than three times the annual revenue of the entire taxi and limousine industry—all without owning any vehicles.
Upwork has more than 12 million registered freelancers, delivering more than 1 billion dollars of work annually for more than 5 million clients around the world.
Blue Apron and Freshly are transforming home cooking by delivering meal kits and recipes to your door. Much more convenient than worrying over the answer to “what's for dinner?” and having to dash around the grocery store.
Khan Academy and Udacity are transforming the education industry. Khan Academy provides free learning, for everyone, anywhere. Udacity is at the heart of the nanodegree movement with its corporate purpose being “to bring accessible, affordable, engaging, and highly effective higher education to the world. We believe that higher education is a basic human right, and we seek to empower our students to advance their education and careers.” Education is a lifelong experience.
As the saying goes, “we ain't seen nothing yet.”
We're in for more massive changes in work, business, and our careers.
Overwhelmed?
Future-proofing your company and career might be challenging at times, but it's possible.
You'll need to take a radical look in the mirror in order to see eye to eye with your colleagues, but it's worth it.
Besides, what's the alternative?
If you'll take time to review your notes at the end of each chapter, or make those notes if you skipped over them, you can begin making small steps for positive change. Don't put this book away or give it away to a colleague until you tackle these important action steps! You can also find printable PDFs and other resources at www.futureproofworkplace.com.
The Future
Are you envisioning the future?
Are you talking about it?
Do you see both the scary scenarios and the possibilities to change work, and change lives, for the better?
Are you taking action to embrace the future?
Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will control your life and you will call it fate.
—Carl Jung
Follow Our Three Es
- Explore: what does the future of work look like for you and your company? Define your purpose (personal and professional) and involve others in embracing the future of work.
- Experiment: Create rapid learning environments, use data and analytics to inform your approach.
- Execute: Dump the policies and procedures rooted in the twentieth century and test the new ways of working.
But most important, act! Identify the one thing you can do today to prepare for tomorrow. You're not just leading a digital revolution. You're also leading a people revolution!
The biggest challenge is to recognize that the future of work is not tomorrow. The future of work is today. The longer you hesitate, the bigger the gap you will need to overcome.
And the sooner you begin the further ahead you'll be.