Media Coverage

The Experts: Information Technology

Everywhere, anywhere replaces the cubicle

Column by Gregory Pride, Inside Business - Hampton Roads, September 29, 2008

Gregory Pride

It’s 2008, and while we've certainly matured during the Information Age, we haven't completely shed all of our archaic rituals.

Many business owners have smartly made a significant investment in network infrastructure and IT-related assets. However, a majority of CEOs still have their employees trapped in the doldrums of “cube land,” a vast wasteland of modular furniture called “the office.”

I'm not suggesting that you terminate your lease and liquidate all of your furniture, but before you begin your next "local" employee search or contemplate acquiring more square footage, consider a trend that's been successfully gaining momentum -- the advent of the remote worker.

Our growing IT company has clients in multiple states and it is a tremendous advantage for me to be able to work from any location. No longer is a travel day a waste of time. You never miss a beat with the correct IT systems.

With advances in technology like mobile broadband Internet, Web portals, VoIP and Unified Communications, you can empower your workforce to be productive from any place - home office (local, out of state or abroad), airport, business travel and weekend jaunts.

Using Web portals built with products like Microsoft SharePoint®, employees can have access to company calendars, document libraries, blogs and more. With VoIP and Unified Communications, your remote staff can receive faxes, voicemail and e-mail to a single inbox, have an office extension at home, or seamlessly route calls between their mobile phone and the VoIP extension.

These technologies keep your employees engaged in company activities, while giving them the power and flexibility to enhance productivity without sacrificing personal time, which is becoming more important with today's and tomorrow's professionals.

Today's technology allows companies to expand their horizons and geographic boundaries through smart recruiting. Every CEO agrees there are more rising stars statewide than locally, more nationally than statewide, and so on. They also know these rising stars are changing the business model.

The “new age” workforce has a different idea of what constitutes a “benefits package.” Health insurance and annual leave don’t cut it anymore. And after witnessing the impact a 60+ hour work week had on their parents' generation, many in today's workforce are not as willing to sacrifice personal time for “the job.” Gone are the late nights in the cubicle eating bad take out with the team.

Today’s worker seeks to balance a healthy and harmonious blend of work life and home life. IT can provide that.

Today's worker most likely lives where the family is happy and is not willing to move. IT eliminates the move and saves on relocation expenses.

Today's worker is tech-savvy and judges a company by its IT. How big does your talent pool become if your next employee can work from anywhere in the world, yet be just a click away? With business moving at the speed of light and a global economy reshaping our future week by week, companies are in fierce competition for these individuals.

Whether it's allowing a local employee to be more productive or recruiting a key player from the other side of the country, IT continues to shift the paradigm and create a new competitive edge for businesses that embrace it.

Gregory Pride is co-founder and vice president of Innovative Vision Technologies Inc., an IT consulting firm headquartered in Hampton. He can be reach by calling 896-3653, Ext. 1002, or e-mail gpride@ivtechcorp.com.