Today’s hottest trends change so often they can be hard to define, but some of the hot topics are crowdsourcing, consumerization of IT, mobility, social media, and globalization. As we grow our tech grows with us. Some trends fall short and don’t stand the test of time; others become part of our everyday lives. Integration into the business world, our personal lives, and having flexibility are key components to staying relevant. One thing that is for sure is that we are steadily becoming a more virtual workplace as time goes by. The methods I mentioned above all focus on trying to help grow this trend, and are doing so successfully.
Crowdsourcing
Crowdsourcing uses people to create and test ideas by bringing them together virtually to share and compare ideas. Everything from new products to marketing plans and brand identity can benefit. It is basically a virtual think-tank, allowing experts or regular individuals from anywhere in the world to compare their best ideas and come up with the best solutions.
Consumerization of IT
It used to be that government and businesses had the best technology, the coolest gadgets, the neatest toys before the rest of the world. This isn’t always the case anymore. In many cases, companies are identifying and using new products at home, then developing ways to use those same products in the workplace. That is the idea behind consumerization of IT.
Mobility
If you trap your staff inside they are going to be limited to the ideas, methods, and plans they see there and are used to. This is referred to as being “office-locked”. Personnel like this aren’t as productive as they could be. Mobility leads to outside ideas and fresh new looks that can improve business practices and breathe new life into a business.
Social Media
Social Media is becoming a staple among businesses and other large organizations. It helps staff communicate, enables deeper relationships between staff that are long distance (which reduces their virtual distance), and allows remote workers to find information when they need it. Doesn’t matter how far apart your employees are when you use social media. Whether you use Facebook, or create your own, as some educational systems and larger companies have done, social media seems to have benefits.
Globalization
Every single organization is being affected by this trend. Thanks to the internet, and the ease of communication, across the world isn’t that far away anymore. You can sell your product to someone 6000 miles away without an issue. Opening up new customer pools is not the only benefit of globalization though. Improved employee pools have become a major asset to many organizations, and with the latest in mobile technology it’s never been easier to work away from the main office. Video conferencing, Bluetooth, smartphones, all coming together through Unified Communications have made hiring employees from anywhere in the world possible.
All of these trends come together to improve on your businesses Ideas, productivity, relationships among staff, cost savings, and much more.