By ENGAGE
The world of work has changed. And it’s changing again – fast. The relaxation of guidance in the wake of the pandemic means the onus is now firmly on employers to create a safe working environment, adapt working practices to answer employee concerns, and ensure teams can work together – all while continuing to deliver on strategic business goals.
While some organisations have announced blanket approaches to the future of work, this simply doesn’t cater for the need to be agile in the face of ongoing uncertainty.
That’s because planning and implementing a future of work that suits your organisation isn’t a single event. It’s a strategic and iterative process that requires a careful balance between organisational needs and employee preferences.
But where do you start? And how do you plan for an uncertain future?
The answer lies in people data. While there is no off-the-shelf playbook for the future of work (if anyone tells you there is, they’re lying!), a data-driven approach allows you to test and adapt your strategy until you get it right.
Measuring business KPIs on their own – sales, customer feedback, productivity, financial results – will quickly tell you whether things are working. But if they aren’t, you’ll need to know why.
Only by taking a measured, evidence-based approach that combines people data with wider business measurement can you continually manage change, while understanding the short and long-term impacts of your future of work plans.
This allows you to define a clear strategy for:
- Purpose – refocusing on the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of your business; balancing the needs of employees with the needs of the organisation as a whole
- Balanced leadership – engaging your employees with the return-to-workplace strategy that’s right for the business and effectively leading people through this change
- Teams – managing remote or hybrid teams; recognising contributions and measuring performance differently
- Culture – understanding the role of culture in your future of work; understanding the impact that new ways of working have on issues such as innovation, diversity and inclusion.
The organisations that will succeed in the future of work are those who are most effective at managing change, making smart – not just fast – decisions. To find out how yours can be one of those organisations, download our guidance today.
