by Caroline Leach | Jun 28, 2015 | Change, Leadership, Learning
What are the work skills of the future?
My last post on Working Globally prompted me to revisit a fascinating report that the Institute For the Future published called Future Work Skills 2020.
It sets forth six change drivers in the world that will reshape how we work:
- Extreme longevity. How will you think about living your life that may extend to 120 years . . . or beyond?
- Rise of smart machines and systems. How will you effectively interact with machines in the worlds of work and play?
- Computational world. How will data drive your life and your decision making?
- New media ecology. How will you communicate effectively in a more networked, visual world?
- Superstructed organizations. How will you communicate and connect on a massive scale, beyond traditional organizational boundaries?
- Globally connected world. How will you increase the diversity of your connections and your adaptability to multiple cultures?
These disruptive changes then pointed to 10 key skills for the future. And while they apply to all workers, it’s interesting how many of them have specific implications for communicators.
That means corporate communications will take on even more significance in the future. Communicators have a key role to play in helping people make sense of complexity and focus on what’s most important to the organization and its stakeholders.
Let’s look at cross-cultural competency. As one of the 10 key skills of the future, it’s defined as the ability to work effectively in different cultural settings.
You could end up working anywhere in the world. Or working with other people around the globe, regardless of your geographic location.
And if you don’t see that opportunity in your current role, it’s something important to seek out where you are or in your next move.
And to work effectively anywhere in the world, you have to be adaptable and flexible. You have to quickly get a read on how people think, how they get things done, and what social and cultural norms they follow. These are great overall change management skills, too, by the way.
Striking the right balance in cultural adaption is also important. As Andy Molinksy of the Brandeis International Business School says, “adapt to a new culture, but don’t go too far.”
Not only should you assess how another culture is different from yours, he says, but you also need to understand the level of difference and adjust your behavior to the right degree.
This is where a focus on diversity and inclusion is invaluable. The Future Skills 2020 report highlights the important role of diversity, in both cross-culture adaptability and in innovation.
This is the ability for diverse teams to come together, identify their points of communality as well as the different perspectives and experiences that enable them to innovate, and created a shared agenda.
In my current role, the markets we serve in the United States and Latin America are diverse and evolving rapidly. Our workforce must fully reflect our customer base, as well as understand the needs of each customer segment.
We also depend on a constant stream of innovation, which is fueled by new ideas and new thinking that come from a diverse workforce. And an inclusive workplace culture is one that fosters collaboration, productivity and engagement.
Want to know more? Check out DIRECTV’s Corporate Social Responsibility Report.
And speaking of diverse teams, pictured above are just a few of my incredible colleagues. Every day I’m amazed and awed by their ideas, insights and accomplishments, and how they all come together to create a highly engaging work environment and corporate culture.
What other skills help to operative effectively in any environment? One is speaking the language. I’ll explore that in an upcoming post.
by Caroline Leach | Jun 4, 2015 | Corporate Communications, Leadership, Learning
Visiting one of DIRECTV’s Denver offices this week, I felt a special energy.
People were upbeat and friendly. A hum of activity filled the halls. Lively conversations spilled out of the elevators.
A lobby sign reminded employees they’ve made the company a Denver Post top workplace for three years in a row.
(Kudos are in order here for Denver-based communications leader Anthony Martini, HR leader Carlos Botero and all of the leaders and employees at our Denver sites.)
It was not unlike the company’s many other locations, where people are highly engaged in entertaining the future by delivering the best video experience in the world.
What makes a top workplace?
While there are many models and methodologies for identifying top workplaces, for me there are three things. They all need to be present for an engaging and energizing employee experience.
Purpose. What is the company’s vision? How is it changing the world? And how are employees part of something much bigger than themselves as individuals?
A compelling and inspiring purpose motivates people to pour their heart and soul into their work. It drives discretionary effort, where employees put in significant amounts of effort above and beyond what their jobs require.
Many companies today report low levels of engaged employees. That’s why I’m especially proud of my colleagues at DIRECTV, whose high engagement and strong financial performance put in the company in Towers Watson‘s high performing companies norm.
Leaders play a critical role. They’re the ones who articulate the purpose and communicate every day in their words and actions how their teams further that purpose. One of their most important roles is also to express a genuine interest in employees and inspire them to deliver their best efforts.
Communication is the catalyst. It gets back to the tree-falling-in-the-forest question in my first post. Without effective communication, a compelling purpose is nearly nonexistent.
“Start with why,” Simon Sinek said in a TED talk with 22 million views, How Great Leaders Inspire Action.
People. We spend most of our days with our work colleagues. Talented and positive people make the workplace come alive.
It starts with having a compelling employer brand, articulating the promise of the employee experience your company offers. That branding brings top talent on board, and ongoing development keeps everyone growing and stretching.
Add to that an inclusive work environment that values everyone’s ideas and insights. This leads to a constant stream of innovation, not to mention better decision making and happier employees who enjoy coming to work each day.
Possibilities. Limitless potential encourages people to keep stretching and growing — to learn and develop themselves as they contribute to the success of their organizations and their teams.
That doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone is on track to climb what used to be known as a corporate ladder. It does mean that people have an opportunity to build valuable skills and experiences, that they’ll put to use at their current organization or another one.
LinkedIn’s Reid Hoffman and colleagues call these “tours of duty” in The Alliance. In this framework, “Employees invest in the company’s adaptability, and the company invests in employees’ employability.
This creates multiple possibilities for the future, strengthening both people and organizations in the process.
A top workplace isn’t about free food, yoga classes, pet care or a myriad of other perks.
While those are nice and most people wouldn’t refuse them if offered, those are extrinsic rewards. This makes them more ephemeral and less powerful than intrinsic rewards, where the enjoyment of the work itself is the reward.
Enjoyment and inner fulfillment come from a strong purpose, great people and limitless possibilities. These are a lot less expensive than 24/7 meal service. And much more sustainable and satisfying to boot.
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