Are you frustrated by the long chain of e-mail messages in your inbox each morning? Do you wish you could meet with your co-workers in person instead of over Skype? You're not alone. Many employees lament that new technologies have eliminated much of the face-to-face work of the business world. But Natalie Burg, writing for Unify, claims that new tech doesn't have to make a workplace less people-friendly.
Using it right
The key, Burg writes, is for companies to use technology properly. Too many companies use tech such as e-mail and video conferencing in order to pile more work on their employees. This can result in employees feeling drained by the end of the day. But Burg writes that there's a way for companies to employ tech properly: They just need to use new technology to make their employees' lives less complicated.
Evolve
Burg writes of a more suitable way, though. Companies could use communications technology to make their workers’ lives easier, and not as a way to replace all face-to-face communication. Think about employees who regularly work with peers stationed several time zones away. These employees are now able to communicate - through e-mail or instant messaging - with their fellow workers from the comfort of their own homes, without having to stay late at the office for a phone conversation.
Creating happy, productive workers
Employees tend to be happier when they are able to work on a mobile basis. And when employees are happier, they are generally more productive, as well. The truth is, as Burg writes, companies that don't adapt their technology to make their workers more mobile may soon find themselves abandoned. Why would the top employees choose to work at a company that doesn't incorporate mobile technology?