Much like the shirtless dancing guy in the amusing but compelling video above, workshifting is a physical movement--but instead of flailing your arms, you seamlessly move the location of where you do work. One day, you're meeting your manager online from a coffee shop. And the next, you're prepping a client presentation while sitting at an airport gate. This is all possible thanks to the World Wide Web and its wondrous ways of allowing us to use remote technologies.
On a higher level, however, workshifting is a paradigm movement in the way business runs. With a jump from 919.4 million mobile workers worldwide in 2008 to just over 1 billion forecasted by 2013, the workshifting movement is in full swing.
Those who initiate change, the video suggests, at first seem to be "lone nuts," but they are later recognized as visionary leaders. If your company doesn't have a workshifting policy in place, maybe it's time you took the first bold step.
Here are six steps to start your company's workshifting movement:
1. Have the guts to stand up.
Management might be hesitant to accept this kind of work environment, but show them the benefits. Productivity increases, work-life balance improves, employee morale goes up, and so do cost-savings. See bottom line benefits here → "Workshifting Benefits: The Bottom Line."
2. Make it simple and compelling.
Once you've done your research, draft a plan to present to your stakeholders. If you have no clue where to begin, check this Webinar out → "The Business Case for Web Commuting." It's a clearly defined strategy to present your case.
3. Get your first follower.
Schedule a meeting, present your plan, and let the data and case studies speak for themselves--and don't forget to let your conviction shine. This paper by Wainhouse Research presents several compelling case studies → "Enabling Efficient, High Output Teams through Web Conferencing."
4. Get your second.
Keep the momentum and enthusiasm going. With your first follower as support, present to a second follower.
5. Nurture your followers.
It's about the movement, not you. Pump your followers up with these resources (just to name a few):
It's about the movement, not you. Pump your followers up with these resources (just to name a few):
- www.workshifting.com ;)
- "Work Unchained: Workshifting and the Competitive Edge of the Anywhere Office" [podcast, eBook]
- "Leading Virtual Effectiveness: Four Strategies for Effective Communication in a Distributed Workforce" [eBook]
- "The Top Ten Strategies for Managers of Mobile Workers" [white paper]
- "Presenting the Business Case for Web Commuting" [white paper, podcast]
6. Followers create new followers
They create new followers and then you have a movement.
They create new followers and then you have a movement.
If you want to start a workshifting movement within your company, take a stand, gather the facts, and present a compelling plan with enthusiasm. Once you have that first management follower, others will join, and your movement will take flight.
"When you find a lone nut doing something great, have the guts to be the first person to stand up and join in." Go get your followers, and join the workshifting "in" crowd!
Does your company have a workshifting policy in place, or are you going to be that first "lone nut"?
