The term ‘new work’ refers to the change in the world of work that is taking place in the context of globalization and digitalization. This development is moving away from the classic wage earner, who carries out his or her professional activity according to the strict specifications of an employer, and toward alternative, more flexible approaches that give employees greater decision-making options, more flexibility and enhanced personal development opportunities. Buzzwords related to new work include open-desk offices, agile teams, coworking and a culture of trust.
Overview of content
What principles does new work embody?
What forms of work fall under the concept of new work?
What structures must a company create for its employees?
How can the concept of new work be implemented and integrated in the company?
Why should companies take the concept of new work on board?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of new work?
What principles does new work embody?
New work relies on increased personal responsibility and developing the potential of employees who want to be involved in corporate decisions much more than in the past. Merely acting on a supervisor's instructions is being replaced by employees’ own creativity. Classic decision-making criteria such as salaries and working hours are becoming less important than flat hierarchies, family friendliness and personal development opportunities. By the same token, the emerging concept of new leadership is replacing hierarchical leadership structure with a culture of trust and empathy.
What forms of work fall under the concept of new work?
All concepts that enable employees to organize their lives as flexibly as possible are significant. These include working from home, coworking spaces, flexitime and sabbaticals. Strict professional separation of work groups is being replaced by mixed teams, and the allocation of fixed workplaces is likewise losing importance. Desk sharing, on the other hand, is becoming increasingly popular, allowing employees to freely choose their workplace in the company on a daily basis.
What structures must a company create for its employees?
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How can the concept of new work be implemented and integrated in the company?
Changes in companies usually lead to uncertainty among the workforce. To curb fears at an early stage and gain acceptance of the concept of new work, the changes should be communicated to all employees at an early stage. Transparency is particularly important in this context. Accordingly, staff should be made aware of the numerous advantages but also the challenges that the new working model entails. Employees can then prepare for the coming changes right from the start. To ensure that the new working model is lived out in practice, new work should become part of the corporate culture. This can be achieved by anchoring the concept in the company’s guidelines and actively involving staff in the entire development. It should be noted that new work cannot be implemented overnight. It is by no means enough to simply rely on changing office furnishings and handing out laptops to employees. Some structural changes, such as moving into open-plan offices, can be done group by group. This has the advantage that volunteers can make the move first and report back to colleagues. Elements such as a culture of trust, empathy and new leadership, on the other hand, can only be successfully established together with the whole team.