Page 7 - Council Journal Winter 2019

The very nature of the workforce is changing. Millennials already account for nearly 50% of the US workforce, and they are reshaping expectations. Over 90% expect to stay in a job for less than 3 years, far lower than historical average of 4.4. At the same time, the so-called gig economy is contributing to a labor market characterised by nontraditional, independent and short-term working relationships. One-third of all workers now have some type of gig work arrangement in place. Organisations’ boundaries are becoming more porous. Increasingly it is not just the internal but also the external ecosystem—comprising new kinds of talent, flexible working arrangements, and external contractors and advisors—that defines an organisation.
purpose. In a world of increased uncertainty, company culture and mission are becoming new sources of stability and purpose.
were significantly more engaged at work as well.
FEATURE Change is Changing
sentiment analysis1 to understand how their employees feel about their jobs in real time. A similar change is transforming customer management, as 70% of executives increase their investment in real-time customer analytics in order to make more effective decisions.
3. From fixed to flexible
In this much more flexible environment one thing has not changed: human nature and our desire for stability, predictability and
A survey of 12,000 white-collar employees conducted by The Energy Project and the Harvard Business Review found that employees who derive meaning and significance from their work were more than three times as likely to stay with their organisations, the highest impact of any variable examined in the survey. These employees also reported almost twice the job satisfaction and
The scope of these three shifts is massive. It requires that we adjust to a future in which change cannot and should not be “managed.” A new normal, no longer defined by risk, fear and avoidance but rather by possibility, agility and opportunity, mandates that we not just manage change, but rather embrace it.
1 Sentiment analysis is the automated process of understanding an opinion about a given subject from written language. This technique allows organisations to understand if customers are talking positively or negatively about their products or services, get key insights and automate business
This article originally appeared on Forbes.com.
processes. See our article on this topic also in Council Journal
Council Journal 7