The workplace today is in a state of constant flux. As new, digitally-advanced generations enter the business environment, they're actively pushing the companies they work for to break down some of the long-established career structures we're all used to.
Analytics companies like Gallup find that work-from-home opportunities and flexible scheduling play a critical role in attracting and retaining talent, and work/life balance is becoming an increasingly significant concern. Fortunately, there are some technology innovators out there ready to help organisations embrace this change in the work environment.
Fuze, the global cloud collaboration and communications platform, looks for ways to connect the expanding and migrating workforce through a simple, secure, and singular platform. Their approach to communications ensures that people can connect anywhere, anytime, through devices that suit them. To get a better understanding of worker preferences and productivity and improve their offerings, Fuze frequently invests in global research studies surrounding the nature of work, and how it's changing. At UC EXPO 2018, they'll be discussing their latest Future of Work research.
How Important is the Future of Work to Fuze?
In the lead up to UC EXPO, I was fortunate enough to chat with Michael Affronti, the VP of Product for Fuze. He agreed to talk to me about the upcoming research reveal and what the future of work really means to Fuze. Michael is a man who knows all about the changing nature of the work environment. He still lives across the street from the butcher shop his grandfather launched 50 years ago, which gives him a perfect contrast for his fast-paced, flexible life today.
Michael's responsible for supporting the growth of the company and ensuring customer satisfaction at Fuze through the development of the Fuze platform. He shared that Fuze’s portfolio has expanded rapidly over the last three years: "We've grown from about 300 people to north of 600." To begin with, Fuze was focused on telephony in the cloud, then they began to embrace the concept of digital transformation, discovering that if they wanted to bring more flexibility into the workforce, they needed to combine the right technology with the right culture.
In a world where the standard office is dying out, Fuze has discovered first-hand what it means to be flexible.
"It's things like our unlimited vacation policy combined with our work from anywhere policy. We're constantly experimenting with flexible work experiences that are supported by the collaboration tools we're creating. In the end, this digital transformation (DX) is all about allowing workers to control when and where they work to maximize productivity."
Fuze at UC EXPO
The future of work is a critical consideration to Fuze, which is why the company chose to invest in their new research into the state of employment and flexible working.
"Our new research, while launching in late May, will be previewed at UC EXPO. My keynote will be focusing on that report, introducing the role of people in the future of work, and how it's changed."
Unlike previous research where Fuze focuses largely on the CIO in a company, this study looks at understanding what the preferences are for the people on the frontlines of work. "We're looking at how everyday employees are viewing remote work, the flexible approach to work, the gig economy, and even AI and automation."
Michael noted:"
I'm really passionate about what we build here at Fuze, and what we embody with this idea of the future of work. We're always experimenting with the software that we build, and the ways we implement new strategies."
The Journey Towards a New Working Future
Michael shared that when he graduated from college in 2004, he began a journey working with various companies on a map from analogue to digital. He's gone from a fixed office to a position where he works as often on trains and in airports, as he does in the Fuze office.
