Microsoft, the local paper and everybody talks about the New World of Work. What do I think about it? Well, to me the New World of Work is not about the technology, but about flexibility. It means working when and where suits me best, so that I can be more effective and efficient. And of course make my life easier.
To be honest, I have never had a job where I had to be in an office from 9 to 5. In the nineties, I could get far with a key to the office building, a terminal and e-mail that allowed me to collaborate on an article with a co-author in New York. Today, I have better tools.
Wherever & whenever
I can work any time and any place where the internet is available. So I don’t have to commute to the office during rush hour, which makes my life easier. And I can check for e-mail before I leave and before I go to sleep, and help out my clients in Australia during their office hours. That makes me more effective and efficient.
- Right now, I’m working from my couch at home after dinner, using my laptop and wireless internet.
- At Macaw, we work in a SharePoint team sites. So I don’t need to be in the office to share documents or knowledge with my colleagues. I really miss it when I collaborate with people who don’t have access to a team site.
- Also, I have a secured connection that allows me to work within the company network of my client. So I can access their more heavily secured intranet.
Long distance
My current client is a multinational, so I do projects with teams in many countries. Most of them, I have never met in person. But we can still work together.
- We share our desktop using Live Meeting. We can all see what the presenter is showing in a team site or a powerpoint presentation.
- With a phone bridge, we can join a call and talk with the entire team. We have phones for that of course, but I can also call via Communicator on my laptop. A headset helps me to talk freely.
- If I don’t want to interrupt a colleague with a phone call, I use Instant Messaging to chat. This is especially handy to talk with my team mates on the other side of the Atlantic: I can see if they are available in the Presence information displayed in the messenger tool.
- The different time zones are a complication. But it helps that I can have a meeting from home, so that I don’t have to wait in the office for the Australians to wake up.
So yes, I do like this new world of work. And yes, I am working a lot more hours than the usual 40 hours a week. But I prefer spending that additional time to get results that I can be proud of.
