5 new trends of work of the future

During the health crisis, we witnessed a real mutation of the working world. The pandemic accelerated trends at all levels: new ways of working, managerial innovations, digitalisation of processes, etc. Faced with such a transformation, what could tomorrow's professional landscape look like? Here we take a look at five new and growing work modes.  

1) Teleworking

During the first lockdown in France, the number of teleworkers reached an all-time high, with 41% of employees working from home, according to the 4th edition of the annual Malakoff Humanis Telework Barometer, conducted in December 2020. Employees, executives and managers who experienced full remote working have seen the many benefits of this practice: increased productivity, better work-life balance, reduced absenteeism, savings for the company, reduced environmental impact, etc. But will teleworking become widespread in the wake of the health crisis? This is the opinion of 66% of managers, who are convinced that working from home will become increasingly prevalent in the coming years. In fact, several large companies and international groups, such as Facebook and Twitter, are already planning to make teleworking permanent for a proportion of their employees. However, teleworking is not all good news; far from it. As many employees saw during the health crisis, working conditions at home are not always optimal, distractions are numerous, and the practice of home office can sometimes undermine employee commitment, motivation and productivity. Faced with these many challenges, alternatives to full remote work could emerge, such as hybrid work, which alternates between face-to-face and remote days.  

2) The flex office

With the flex office, there is no dedicated workstation in the company. Employees are thus mobile and free to work wherever they want, whether this be a meeting room, a work cubicle, the rooftop, the cafeteria, or third-party spaces such as a coworking room. This mode of organisation aims to break the sedentary lifestyle and create a more friendly and informal environment. The term "desk sharing" is also used to designate a workplace that has fewer desks than employees. Employees share the same workstation, with a turn-over system: while some work on site, others work remotely. This allows companies to make considerable savings, on account of smaller premises.  

3) Coworking and corpoworking

In France, the number of coworking spaces has tripled in just two years (from 600 to 1,700 between 2017 and 2019), and this trend should continue in the future. Coworking spaces offer optimal working conditions and places of exchange for freelancers, entrepreneurs and employees who telework. Recently, a new concept has also emerged: corpoworking, a hybrid of corporate and coworking. This is simply the setting up of an internal coworking space on a company’s premises. Used by employees, this space is also accessible to individuals outside the company, including freelancers, entrepreneurs or start-ups. These structures make it possible to break with the usual work codes and create a collaborative and friendly environment of exchange, which encourages innovation and collective intelligence.  

4) Digital nomadism

The need for employee mobility has also led to the emergence of a whole new way of working: digital nomadism, or working remotely while travelling on a long-term basis. Mostly practiced by freelancers and entrepreneurs, this mode of work is also attracting more and more employees. According to a study by Emergent Research and MBO Partners, the number of digital nomads in the United States increased by 49% in the space of one year, from 2019 to 2020. This mode of work is very popular in North America, and is also becoming more widespread in Europe. Some even estimate that by 2035, 1 billion people could have adopted this lifestyle worldwide, according to figures reported by The Guardian. One reason for this is the growing attractiveness of the freelance status. According to a study by Urssaf, France was home to over 3.6 million self-employed workers at the end of 2019, including 1.7 million micro-entrepreneurs. This represents an annual growth rate of 3.3% since 2009!  

5) The smart office

The smart office is an intelligent and connected work environment. Using new technologies, the smart office aims to offer employees an optimal space, to reinforce productivity and efficiency and to improve the quality of life at work. A smart office may for example include:

• Smart and connected meeting rooms.
• Video conferencing software and tools.
• Meeting room and office reservation software.
• Digital voice assistants.
• Smart workspaces and virtual offices to facilitate employee mobility.
• Artificial intelligence and process automation software to improve operational efficiency.
• Interactive meeting tools.
• Intranet tools and internal social networks.
• A digital workplace.
• Services marketplace for employees.

These different trends attract companies looking for agility and innovation, and concerned with improving team productivity, commitment and well-being. However, these working methods necessitate the deployment of certain human, material and financial resources. In particular, they require the implementation of an adapted managerial style, in phase with these new innovative organisational modes. Consequently, calling on an interim manager can be a key strategic solution to implement such changes.