Traditional business hierarchies are set to collapse making way for the emergence of a new ‘organic’ workplace; says a new report looking at the future of working.

The study conducted for Hudson by The Future Laboratory says that more flexible and collaborative organisations will be the ones who are successful at retaining and attracting the best staff.

The result is what the researchers call the ‘organic’ workplace: a more open, democratic and decentralised work culture in which employees have greater control of their own career paths and a larger say on how they want to develop within the company structure.

People born after the mid-eighties dubbed ‘Millennials’ in the report will drive the move towards more open and democratic ways of working and will be more demanding in what they want from work and their career, says the report. This will lead to a ‘Talent Corporation’ in which business culture is based upon ways of keeping and nurturing key staff.

According to the report employees will:

• be more autonomous and independent




• be less loyal to a business but more loyal to themselves




• will change job and even career frequently (as much as six to ten times) and pursue portfolio careers




• take more sabbaticals from their jobs




• become ‘flexecutives’ – flexible workers who pursue their own work agendas and often work remotely, from home or on the move




• put more emphasis on knowledge and ideas above practical skills




• be more demanding: expecting employers to guarantee quality of life outside of their career and nurture skills which are relevant to them personally




• expect their employer to have strong ethical and moral values




• be increasingly assessed on their networking ability

The physical concept of the office will also collapse as further advances in technology improve the ability to work remotely, says the report. Tied to these new ways of working will be the need for HR to offer more extensive benefits and rewards packages with work/life balance and flexible working options high on the desired list.

Javier Carrasco, Director at Hudson, commented: “This report unveils a challenging vision of the future workplace that all employers should take notice of. The way in which we work is set to change considerably and, in many instances, this transformation is already underway.

“We’re already seeing strong evidence in the market of a shortage of available talent and a change in what some of our candidates are looking for from their working lives and prospective employers. If the predictions in the report become reality, a new, more democratic and ‘organic’ workplace is set to become the standard business model for the 21st century. Employers would be wise to adopt these practices sooner rather than later if they are to win the battle to retain their best people and attract the brightest talent.”

Hudson recommends employers adopt the following changes to ensure they move in the right direction to embrace the ‘organic’ workplaces of the future:

• implement flatter working structures




• create employer forums to encourage collaborative debate




• encourage remote and flexible working and maximise wireless and Internet technology




• adopt a strong transparency ethic: regular company updates and clear reporting mechanisms; involve staff in AGMs and annual results




• implement a flexible approach to benefits and rewards including holiday options, statutory leave and pensions, share option schemes etc




• foster personal development and training programmes that encourage professional and extra-curricular skills-building