The traditional nine to five office job could soon become a thing of the past, with new research suggesting that just 14 per cent of UK workers want to work in a traditional office in the future.
A new report by PwC, entitled ‘The future of work: A journey to 2022’, shows that 53 per cent of people believe that technology will significantly change the way people work over the next five to ten years and force business owners to reconsider company structures.
The survey questioned 10,000 employees from businesses in the UK, US, China, India and Germany, and found that one in five people say they want to work in a ‘virtual’ place where they can log on from any location or use collaborative work spaces.
The general desire to break free from the traditional office environment suggests that the way people work in the future could change dramatically, with a quarter of UK workers believing that traditional employment will not be around in the future.
Instead, people believe that they will have their own brands and sell their skills to those who need them, and even work for themselves, where they choose.
As such, organisations will need to prepare themselves for this shift, noted Jon Andrews, UK HR Consulting leader at PwC, who said it is clear from the research that nine to five office working could soon become "resigned to history" for many workers.
"People feel strongly that they no longer want to work within the constraints of the typical office environment and advances in technology mean that workers no longer have to be shackled to their desks," he added.
Mr Andrews predicted that this could facilitate the rise of organisations that have a core team embodying the philosophy and values of the company, but a remaining workforce that is not fixed and come in and out on a project-by-project basis.
As such, the growth of a "vibrant, innovative and entrepreneurial" middle market could soon start to challenge big businesses, as they can compete on specialism and price due to their slimmed down business model.
If such a business model comes to fruition, the occasions on which staff were brought together would need to be maximised to ensure that companies derived maximum benefit from the experience.
As such, ample exhibition and conference space would be required, enabling the development of new strategic objectives, staff learning experiences, and opportunities for employees who seldom meet to build relationships.
