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Catalyst | On Topic
oday’s technology makes it possible
to work from virtually anywhere,
a fact recognised by generation Z,
currently entering the workforce.
Its members have different
expectations of employment compared to those
of workers even a decade ago, including how and
where work should be carried out.
As a result, many organisations now rely on
increasingly fragmented workforces, whether
that’s employees working flexibly or remotely,
or contractors and freelancers based in-house or
out of the office. We’ve termed this phenomenon
the “deconstructed workforce”.
However, for all its benefits, this versatility
creates challenges for those in talent acquisition
and management, and some organisations have,
like King Canute, tried to hold back the tide: for
instance, both IBM and Yahoo! hit the headlines
a few years ago by attempting to ban remote
working, despite operating in the very sector
which has enabled such freedom.
Wendy Hirsh, principal associate at the Institute
for Employment Studies, gives the example of a
company that insisted its remote designers begin
working in-house. “That was a terible breach of
the psychological contract and it sent out a terrible
message around trust,” she says. “They tried it for
a few months, then changed back.”
She believes employers have an obligation to
consider what flexible workers or contractors
want, as well as being clear about what is required.
A mindset shift
Such efforts to cling to traditional ways of working
already appear outdated. According to research
by YouGov, just 6% of UK employees work the
traditional hours of nine to five, while government
figures show the number of self-employed people
rose from 3.3 million (12% of the workforce) in
2001 to 4.93 million (15.1% ) today.
According to the Association of Independent
Professionals and the Self-Employed, 320,000
people who have employed status have a second
role they undertake on a self-employed basis. All
this means traditional models are having to adapt.
“The notion of a fixed workplace is changing,”
says Dr Syed Ali Tarek, business lecturer at
Arden University. “Over the past decade, the
digital revolution has opened up possibilities
that were once unthinkable. Many workforce
policies are legacies of the 20th century and are
being challenged to meet the demands of the
21st-century lifestyle.”
Gwendolyn Parkin, director of career consulting
firm Integral Career, believes organisations
need to change their mindsets. “They shouldn’t
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