THE WORKPLACE OF THE FUTURE IS A HYBRID SYSTEM

If you want to recruit and retain the brightest and the best talent - you will need to think differently about how you engage with them.

70 % of people want flexibility of where and when they work - where connection and collaboration with people anywhere around the world is key, and where they want a pathway to lifelong learning .

 

Working from remote locations like homes and cafes comes with more security threats - and risk of your human capital leaving - is leading to a massive disruption of organisations workforces - where at anyone time 40% of your workforce are being approached to leave and pursue other opportunities .

Businesses will not only have to rely on good technology to increase productivity and job satisfaction - they will have to provide a great culture and collaborative community and a pathway to be upskilled and cater for “the lifelong learner”.

 

• Attitudes need to change
• Cultures need to change 
• Kpi’s need to change 
• Systems will need to change to cope with the fluid workforce
• Technology and office layouts need to change 
•  Teams need to collaborate using technology, like dedicated Teams/Zoom Rooms.
• Audio and video quality needs to be superb when connecting online - both at the office and at your team members homes

The #NexttechRevolution has arrived , shifting change from traditional to hybrid workplaces - and where the power has shifted from the organisation to the lifelong learner 

 

Inspired by Roger Amir at Mitronics and Heather McGowan 

#the5cs #bbgforum #bsi 

The Story of WiFi - OzInnovation

One of the greatest Australian inventions, wi-fi technology was developed by a team of radio astronomers in CSIRO in 1992. The team comprised of Dr. John O’Sullivan, Mr. John Deane, Mr. Diet Ostry, Dr. Terry Percival, and Mr. Graham Daniels and worked extensively on the issue of radio waves bouncing off indoor surfaces and thus resulting in an echo distorting the signal. They resolved this problem by creating a fast chip for signal transmission during the echo thus leading to the invention of Wi-fi. This technology, now used by more than a billion people globally, has now become an indispensable part of our lives.

Link to other Oziinventions -https://leverageedu.com/blog/australian-inventions/

Joyous - HR tech company raises $14.5m to help build a culture of diversity equity and inclusion in the workplace?

The Wicked Problem 

“Organisations need to find a way of including all staff in decision-making and they need to acknowledge employee satisfaction and culture as key contributors to performance and those that succeed will outperform their competitors.” 

Says Mike Carden co-founder of Joyous 

“Employees want to tell their leaders about things that are happening to them, but there aren’t that many ways for them to do that outside of anonymous feedback, which immediately becomes someone else’s problem,”

The solution 

Joyous has raised $14.5 million from Square Peg, AirTree Ventures and Icehouse Ventures to build out its enterprise feedback software and enhance its machine learning insights - that will help track measure and reward employee engagement .

Joyous, is a tool that creates transparent conversations between managers and staff, directs them to relevant people within an organisation then layers a machine learning element to extract insights into how the company can achieve its objectives.

Mike Carden has done this before - and VCs back people! He founded  m HR software-as-a-service (SaaS) business called Sonar6, which was acquired by Nasdaq-listed Cornerstone OnDemand, in 2012.

Problems that need to be solved

How do multinational organisations cope with remote working across countries?

.

How can you track and measure how your team feels? 

How can employers use software to monitor where employees are and how they feel when they work remotely,?

Money use for 

The money raised will be used to hire  more data scientists to work with its large enterprise customers to further tweak how employee feedback can enhance business-wide decision-making.

Square Peg co-founder Barry Brott said.

“They’re building something of real consequence – giving workers a voice, and helping companies champion trust, action and autonomy,”

Other companies to look out for in this space 

www.rapidawards.com.au

https://culturalinfusion.org.au/

https://bbgforum.com.au/forum/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-forum/

Discussing Diversity Equity and Inclusion in the workplace

Lost your job or business? Where to from here ? 5 ways to move forward

Losing your job or business is scary, and the uncertainty of a secure financial future can make you feel hopeless. It can feel like you’ve been punched in the gut and are caught completely off-guard and you are thinking where to from here! 

An interesting stat is that the average millennial will have at least 17 careers over the course of their life - they need to treat these moves as an opportunity to learn and grow 

A fallout from the pandemic is that the economy and the future of work is changing and will eithereithereither

1. Lose their job - get retrenched - (maybe to a robot) 
2. Look for a change 
3. Lose their business 

It has given the employer, employee - and the business owner and leader an opportunity to make a change.! 

You may be retrenched tomorrow and your lump sum retrenchment looks amazing, or your Jobkeeper subsidy or grant may feel like a windfall - but let me tell you - it goes quickly !!!

It is super scary 

You are doing fine and boom - the next thing - - - - you do not know where to go tomorrow you are lost, confused and stressed about the future - your livelihood and way of life is in jeapardy!

Below are some 5 that you can help go forward

1. Get into the right mindset 

 Treat this time as an opportunity

 You will be hit with a flood of thoughts and emotions – anger, anxiety, sadness, hopelessness – these negative feelings can affect you and prevent you from pushing forward.

Do not veg in front of the TV or binge on Netflix or computer games and go down that rabbit hole 

By doing - by taking positive action  - will lead to more opportunities - Join a network group - with a view to connect, collaborate and grow  - work for a not for profit  - in an area you want to focus in - target your customers - and connect with them  - remember the motto (Gpwtwaygwyw) give people what they want and you will get what you want! Plan to get in front of your boss or ideal client base 

2. Treat finding a new job or business like a job  

• Look in newspapers,
•  online job boards , seek.
• Speak to friends and family
• Look to the  new- economy - Uber, Airbnb 
• Commercialise your hobby 
• What else? Share in comments below 👇🏻👇🏾👇🏿

3.  Don’t feel ashamed about applying for Centrelink or government support 

That’s why you pay your taxes. The cool thing in Australia is that no-one needs to starve! 

3. Analyse your financial situation and budget like your life depended on it! 

List your assets, liabilities - your income and expenses for the last 12 months 

 Only keep the bare essentials (food and shelter - and cut out the rest . 

Ask for a reduction in rent and potentially pause your mortgage payments. 

Avoid touching your super - and maybe look to have your insurances for need by super 

4. Re skill become a lifelong learner 

Take the opportunity to learn a new trade, profession  or business. Speak to Nexttech (www.Nexttech.edu.Au  or www.BSILearning.edu.au) (Message me and I will refer you)

Treat yourself as a lifelong learner . 

Did you know that every Australian has the ability to get up to $100k government loan - worth of accredited education - that only needs to be paid back when you earn more than $50k per annum. 

Make sure you do it with others - ideally in an area that you feel you can carve out your next career. Make sure you max out this opportunity!!!  

5. Get yourself a mentor and a coach or be part of a #bbgforum

Get them to hold you accountable - this will probably be your best investment (and in my view an essential payment) 

As my mother in law says - you’ve got to speculate to accumulate 

Remember - any change evokes the same feelings - by most people - and the one thing you can be certain about in life - is change 

Don’t just choose action - choose “the right action” 

Look at every cent you spend as a cent towards your survival, and every minute  you spend as a gold coin - toward getting back on your growth path 

Inspired by Smart Ways to Manage Money After a Job Loss

By Tracey Edmonds

Emma Sydney and the Transformation Forum

How do you prevent burnout at Crunchtime?

Thanks Nexttech Learning for pointing me to this great study of how great Army leaders prevent burnout during Crunchtime !

And we all know how “Crunch Episodes” often shapes your organisations culture -  results and behaviours during these times dwarfs the effects of other, “steady” times .

It’s well known that “cadets” and “professionals” of Firms, Consultancies and Armies work gruelling hours required in the final weeks before deadlines.

 “we call this Crunch Time”

If the success of the project comes at the cost of your teams mental or physical health and burn out -  is it worth it?

What is burnout?

Burnout is a bone tired , soul tired, heart tired kind of exhaustion 

Flavio Serapiao Andrew Hill and Boris Groysberg write a great article in the HBR about a research study identifying three interconnected behaviours that characterise effective leaders in the Army (link below) .

1. Be approachable and open,
2. Know the system and mission. 
3. Managing the risk between 1 and 2 - is the X factor that makes a good leader a great leader!!

1. What is Approachable and Open?

• Showing that you care - being empathetic
• Minimizing barriers between the leader and the team.
• Let the team know (through words and actions) that their voices matter.
• Effective listening 
• Be open to new ideas

2. Knowing the system and mission

• Be Crystal clear of the Mission, Vision, Values and Goals
• Understand the operations and tasks that are essential to mission success.
• Be technically competent to a high standard. 
• Know what they don’t know - and be able to fill the gaps 
• Get out to see what’s happening on the “factory floor”
• Understand the costs and consequences of operational decisions.
• Being able to see the big picture 

3. Balancing the risks between the mission and the people. 

A leader who never takes risks will never achieve victory - however if he is reckless with the lives under his or her command it will diminished effectiveness, decreased morale and discipline, and a higher risk of outright disobedience…… and potentially create “burnout”

How do you manage this risk and get your team to outperform at Crunch Time and more importantly prevent “Burnout”?

This is where the rubber hits the road, and what makes a good leader a great leader!!

Here are some cool tips

Before Crunchtime

1. Build loyalty and trust - invest in your people , building  commitment, loyalty, and ownership 
2. Align the team with the mission, vision and values . Look after the people - they will look after the mission 
3. Have activities to maintain morale and confidence during crunch. 
4. Have open lines of communication so that team members could signal problems.
5. Set clear goals, so teams can understand the bigger picture when a mission involves a significant potential sacrifice, creating shared understanding. 
6. Be prepared to put the team before their personal interest
7. Be obsessed with your team’s professional development. Continually upskill and reskill your team
8. Make mental health a priority. Make it clear that seeking mental health support is not a sign of weakness.

During Crunchtime

1. Set aggressive but achievable goals. Learn from your team’s failures, and provide feedback to address their development gaps.
2. Share the burden and be a part in the team’s sacrifice.
3. Keep open lines of communication. Be transparent and keep them updated 
4. Don’t put your personal interests over the team’s.

A leader’s ability to balance the risks of mission and to people is key to success

Here is the link to the article 

https://hbr-org.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/hbr.org/amp/2021/09/managing-through-crunch-time-without-burning-out-your-team

AIIA shares the opportunity for Australia to be a Major Player on the World Stage - through Technology

It’s an exciting time to be on the technology and innovation space in Australia and the AIIA have prepared an 83 page report suggesting a roadmap of how Government can support the #nexttechrevolution.

The importance of Learning, Reskilling and Upskilling is weaved throughout this whitepaper 

The Opportunity 

Investment in innovation and technology  is giving us - as a nation -  a transformative opportunity that is a game changer - and for us to take advantage of this - we need to change our mindset and change the way we and others view us - With  our size location a strategic advantage! 

We need to not only focus on the research and R&D - but also on the commercialisation of the technologies and research that we undertake! 

Those that drive technology innovation and commercialisation at the core of their strategies will win and it is key for Australian Government to continue backing tech innovation to stay ahead of the curve

We are at the start of a great trajectory 

 It is pleasing to have ScoMo (our Prime Minister) stating as a major economic and policy goal for Australia to be a leading digital economy by 2030 - with a $1.2 billion Digital Economy Strategy. 

And the NSW Government investing $2 billion in its Digital Restart Fund with Victor Dominello leading the charge !

Venture Capital investing has shown some significant returns with over 20 unicorns being created over the past few years!

It is a start - And I am sure there is a lot more to come! 

Government Support 

Government  have acknowledged that 

• Recognising that digitising the economy is critical to our national success;

• Increasing the R&D tax incentive and introducing a patent box;

• Appointing a Minister for the Digital Economy;

• Funding a National Freight Hub;

• Investment in digital skills; and

• Investing in cyber security resilience

The  AIIA suggested the areas of focusing the following areas - and this whitepaper  recommendations of what the government can do in each of these areas

• health, 
• manufacturing, 
• agriculture, and 
• digital government ; 
• AI, Quantum, digital engineering, 
• industry incentives and 
• cyber security.

(mining and oil and gas and renewables not mentioned - not technologies as it relates to renewables )

How government is and can continue supporting the digitisation of the country

• Being intentional in supporting technology in growth areas
• Supporting  the creation of industry hubs
• incentives such as commercialisation australia and entrepreneurs programme, RDTI and export grants - supporting Australian technology innovators are supported to thrive, not just survive, through a strong shift from a research driven agenda to one of commercialisation.
• Supporting the building of skills - specifically a focus of microcredential skills and accreditation

Some of the players in the AIIA

 • Bridget Tracy, AIIA NSW Council

 • Ron Gauci, AIIA

• Ramah Sakul, SAP

• Peter Anstee, CyberCX

• Ashok Mysore, Infosys

• Kristina Kipper, KPMG

• Anna Phan, IBM

• John Mackenney, Adobe 

• Ben Peterson, IBM

• Michelle Frazer, DB Results 

• James Jackson, Accenture 

• Simon Bush, AIIA - simon@aiia.com.au.

• Dr Tim Mumford - Infrastructure Australia

• Marie Truelove - CSIRO Data-61

• Dr. Ian Oppermann - Chief Data Scientist, NSW

• Adam Beck - Smart Cities Council, Australia & New Zealand

• Dr Graeme Kernich - Frontier SI

• Teresa Scott - Australasian Procurement and

Construction Council

• Dr Tim Smyth - Adjunct Professor, University of Technology Sydney

• Jordan Griffiths, Accenture

Here is a copy of the report 

 https://aiia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/AIIA-Growing-Globally-Competitive-Industries.pdf