Discussing ‘The Future of Work’ at the Dublin Chamber

Chas Moloney, director for Ricoh Ireland and UK, recently delivered a keynote presentation to a full house at a ‘Future of Work’ event in the Dublin Chamber. He was also joined by Siobhan O’Shea, Client Services Director for Cpl, and Dawn O’Driscoll, Group HR Director for Ervia, to discuss the prevalence of flexible working, the importance of adopting sustainable business processes and the impact of creating an environment that empowers people. In the following article, Chas talks about the steps organisations need to take to embrace the future of work.

Put people first

The workplace has changed. It is now defined by various generations, different expectations and individual workstyles. In other words, organisations need to be adaptive if they are to embrace and benefit from the future of work.

In order to enable business transformation and boost productivity, it’s imperative to take a people-first approach to the various elements that make up the workplace – including technology, culture and space.

Finding out what people want and enabling them to work more effectively is vital, as is acknowledging the fact that there are five generations currently in the workplace, each of whom have their own needs and priorities.

In order to help them fulfil their responsibilities and enable them to thrive, business leaders need to understand and facilitate individual workstyles through practical processes, strategies and technologies.

Create a positive culture

Company culture is absolutely vital in terms of attracting, retaining and supporting talent. Increasingly, people are looking for employers that are passionate about ethics and societal issues, such as climate change and sustainability.

Moreover, organisations that encourage a healthy work-life balance and promote employee wellbeing are benefitting and growing more than those that do not. This can be achieved in simple ways, for example by making it acceptable for employees not to check work emails outside office hours, unless of course this is the way they like to work.

A positive, engaged and inclusive culture has therefore become as important as the salary and benefits you offer. But the business also benefits as a happier workforce is often more productive, which increases organisational output and performance.

Use technology wisely

Technology and data is moving at such a rapid pace that it has outgrown companies’ abilities to adapt. The key here is to provide technologies that support and empower your employees; not simply introduce the latest tools.

For example, if a third of your staff are working on the move, it’s crucial to have the infrastructure and systems that allow them to effectively and securely access information, work on files and collaborate with colleagues from wherever they are.

Companies that listen to the requirements of their workforce and instil trust in them to work how, where and when they want will survive to see and thrive within the future of work.

Be flexible with workstyles

With choice being key, the workplace needs to be fluid and leaders need to appreciate that a one-size-fits-all approach won’t work. The fact is that while some still want to work from a traditional office space, there has been a huge shift towards remote working.

In fact, for many organisations, the office will become an occasional destination and permanent employees based there will be the exception. However, this won’t change the fact that companies need to be agile for everyone.

With 84% of organisations struggling to adapt to the needs of the workforce, the time for change is now. In order to make an impact for your people and organisation, it’s important to be brave and show optimism. While it will take time to determine the best strategy for your company, the potential benefits can be transformative.

You can find the presentation from the Dublin Chamber event here. To get in touch with the Ricoh Ireland team to see how you can embrace the future of work, click here.

To download the slides from this event click here