The Working Now
The Future of Work is a wonderful thing to contemplate and explore. But the more pressing issues for organisations lie in how they make the most of the ‘working Now.’ More immediate and far less academic than the future – the ‘working Now’ holds substantial challenges for organisations and talent. To punk the artist, Rodney White – our belief is that the best way to inaugurate a smarter Future of Work is to see that future as just a collection of successive Nows.
It is for this ‘working Now’ that we have shaped a more compelling and mutual talent solution, to benefit both:
- The expanding universe of for-purpose organisations and Not For profits
- The growing global talent pool of purpose mined people drawn from hundreds of countries across the globe
Building Better Talent Solutions
Until now, academic framings seem to have side-stepped the undeniable effect of purpose. Take WORK 4.0, the ‘future of work’ framing that accompanies Industry 4.0. It is a reasonably robust base from which to engineer a meaningful and applicable ‘people’ strategy. But it doesn’t account for the more human cultural drivers of our collective desire to build and solve for a better and more respectful human existence. It doesn’t account for ‘purpose’.
Purpose-powered people
Purpose presents itself as a powerful driver of change pushing diagonally up through the practical, applied, systemic,
Purpose is, unquestionably, a powerful driver of change. Pushing diagonally up through the organisational stack, purpose is changing organisational thinking and doing. And it is doing it across every layer – from the practical, applied, systemic, and operational to the cultural and reputational.
For some, the increasingly measurable and very human impact of purpose is the killer App in transforming the world of work right now. Certainly, the Pandemic has made a more purposeful, responsible approach to the actions and impacts of any organisation’s growth and prosperity a table stake.
And their strategies are increasingly engineered with two primary customers in mind – people and planet.
But we still have a long way to go before the balance between more toxic organisations and those demonstrating more enlightened sustainable and ethical credentials tips in favour of Team Positive.
Money Talks & People Walk
Clearly, the escalation of an ESG worldview is redefining what it means to be a successful, thriving investment opportunity. A recent article in the Harvard Business Review pointed to investors with $100 trillion of assets under management [AUM] signed up to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment, This advocates for a greater focus on ESG issues in investing.
In our increasingly ESG-focused world, money may well talk but the The Great Resignation proves that employees will walk if work isn’t working for them. We need to act upon this momentum.
As Michael Stubbs, the Mayor of the previously bankrupt city of Stockton CA says in the Vice documentary The Future of Work:
“…it’s about getting our foundations of work set in the present, so when the Future of Work happens, we have a firm foundation on which we can pivot and figure out what we can do with and for people.”
Michael Stubbs, via The Future of Work
Talent to the power 3
Without doubt, to set these foundations in an increasingly volatile working landscape requires organisations to juggle and manage multiple potential Talent models.
There are – i] hybrid remote/on site working – ii] hybrid local/global working – and iii] hybrid fluid/fixed working – models to consider. The complexities multiply further when you spread them across myriad operational and governance structures.
So we have simplified all of these complex coordinates, models and layers into three key dimensions. These dimensions are pivotal in how we model best experience and outcomes for both purposeful people and organisations alike.
These dimensions are DYNAMIC, IMPACTFUL and ETHICAL.
We believe these dimensions or pillars, provide the foundation of a more applicable, sustainable and resilient on-demand talent solution. They are certainly more fitting to the world of work we now find ourselves in.
They allow us to identify the acute and chronic pressure points that organisations face right now and solve for them. They allow us to more clearly define how we add value, drive greater efficiencies and deliver greater economies.
DYNAMIC
Firstly, an Increasingly volatile recruitment landscape demands a more agile hybrid talent model. Fully authenticated, high-quality On Demand talent have become a critical component in an organisation’s best performance and competitive advantage.
WFI solution
Hyper-flexible hiring configurations: swift, seamless, secure on boarding, paperless contracts & payments system, no subscriptions + 24/7 Customer Success team to make it happen.
IMPACTFUL
Secondly, an expanding universe of purposeful organisations are shaping a better existence for their customers and society. This coupled with new generations of employees seeking to make their mark is creating an increasing desire for high-impact talent.
WFI solution
Values-Aligned Talent selection from a world of socially impactful, mission-led professionals looking to make an impact with purposeful and Not-For-Profit organisations.
ETHICAL
Thirdly, the global workforce is expanding exponentially. Hyper connected technologies allow talent to be drawn from all jurisdictions now, including low-income economies. This demands that highest ethical standards be applied in the brokerage of any talent seeking to secure work beyond the safety of their immediate environment.
WFI solution
Highest ethical standards applied to every talent search and placement. An open and fully transparent platform ensures fairness and equality as standard in all aspects of the process.
Impact is Everything
Work For Impact is a purpose-powered, B Corps-certified On Demand Talent platform dedicated to matchmaking a world of purposeful Talent with a world of purposeful organisations. It was designed with one pure outcome in mind – positive impact.
Impact is everything to us, as it is to the talent we represent and the clients we serve. And we believe that impact can come from anyone, anywhere, anytime. People from advanced economies do not have the monopoly on a desire to have a positive impact in the world. But the world of work still heavily favours people in high-income economies where education, up-skilling, connectivity and tech are more readily available and more widely distributed.
Which is why Work For Impact actively supports levelling up and expanding the global talent pool by facilitating opportunities for young people in low-income countries.
Read the full Work For Impact to the power 3 white paper here.