The 2014 Cisco Connected World Technology Report (CCWTR) reveals that employers are adapting their policies to accommodate the growing desire for flexible work styles among Generation X (born 1960s-1980s) and Millennial (born 1980s-2000s) employees.
This year’s CCWTR expands on its usual exploration of young workers’ mindsets and behaviors by examining how Gen X and HR professionals value connectivity, perceive their work availability, and influence IT policies, product design, and business competitiveness.
The report, drawing on data from India, China, Japan, Korea, and Australia, highlights how technology shapes the future of work. It analyzes how device preferences enable new work styles, like the rise of “Supertaskers” who use multiple devices concurrently. It also delves into shifting perceptions of remote work (with 44% of Millennials finding offices most productive), application preferences (60% favor pen and paper over note-taking apps), and global talent acquisition (50% of hiring managers would hire based solely on video interviews).
Key Findings:
Supertaskers
Nearly two-thirds believe that by 2020, organizations will highly value “Supertaskers,” individuals adept at multitasking effectively. Over 40% of Gen X and Gen Y professionals, along with nearly 60% of HR professionals, identify as Supertaskers. HR professionals perceive Supertaskers as raising the bar for high performers, suggesting they are well-suited for managerial, individual contributor, or executive roles. About half of Gen X and Gen Y professionals believe Supertasking boosts productivity, a sentiment echoed by 62% of HR professionals who see it enhancing organizational productivity. Most respondents develop Supertasking skills through managing their personal lives, with a majority, particularly Gen X professionals (70%), blending work and personal activities.
Gen X versus Gen Y
When it comes to efficiency and multitasking, Gen Y professionals are more likely than Gen X employees to perceive themselves as “wired” differently. Over half (56%) of Gen Y professionals consider themselves more efficient than Gen X employees. Compared to other generations, over 40% of professionals believe Gen Y employees excel at Supertasking. Sixty percent of Gen X professionals and 81% of HR professionals believe Gen Y employees complete tasks faster using mobile devices and apps than older generations. Furthermore, 70% of HR professionals think Gen Y employees work faster on mobile devices and apps compared to desktops or laptops.
Managing Gen X and Gen Y Employees
Almost two-thirds of Gen X and over 80% of HR professionals have managed both Gen X and Gen Y employees. Most of this group finds Gen X professionals easier to manage than their younger counterparts, while approximately one-third find both generations equally manageable. More than one-third of Gen X and HR professionals who have managed Gen Y employees cite their “I want it now” ambition as the biggest challenge. Both Gen X and HR professionals agree that managers need to adapt their coaching, mentoring, and collaboration approaches as more Gen Y employees enter the workforce.
The Future of HR and Recruiting
Nearly six in ten (58%) HR professionals are open to hiring candidates solely through video conferencing, without in-person interviews. Among hiring managers in general, slightly fewer (50%) share this openness. Regarding organizational culture, HR professionals are divided on whether prioritizing top talent or cultural fit is more critical. Most HR professionals (40%) believe personal skills are paramount when hiring for entry-level positions. While one-third of professionals maintain a local job search approach, nearly one in five, particularly in India, already search nationally or globally.
The Always-On Lifestyle
Over half of professionals (both Gen X and Gen Y) consider themselves accessible for work 24/7, including 30% reachable by email and phone. This constant accessibility contributes to the erosion of the traditional 9-to-5 workday. Professionals now often work 7-to-8, with 9 am to 12 am being the next most popular timeframe, followed by 2 am to 5 pm and 9 am to 10 pm. There is a near-even split in preference between the freedom to work anytime, anywhere, without restrictions versus a traditional, scheduled 9-to-5 workday. While most Gen X professionals believe Gen Y employees prefer flexible schedules, Gen Y professionals lean slightly towards traditional schedules at 54%. The largest proportion of Gen Y professionals (44%) report greater focus and productivity while working in the office, while Gen X professionals (38%) express equal focus and productivity both at home and in the office. Although opinions are somewhat divided, a slight majority, especially in China, Korea, Russia, and Mexico, believe in maintaining distinct work and personal life boundaries.
Flexible Working Schedules
While approximately half of Gen X and Gen Y professionals believe their HR departments are adapting to facilitate mobile and flexible work styles, almost one-third believe this adaptation is not happening quickly enough. From an HR perspective, 56% state their departments have implemented or are planning to implement more mobile, flexible work models. Most professionals anticipate the continued existence of physical offices in 2020, though around 40% believe they will be significantly smaller. Furthermore, over half of Gen X and Gen Y professionals expect their jobs to require some office presence depending on their schedules. Opinions among HR professionals regarding future work schedules are divided, though 40% believe employees will have the option to work from home occasionally.
About 25% of Gen X and Gen Y professionals report their organizations permit them to work remotely, but Gen Y professionals with this opportunity are more likely than their Gen X counterparts to prefer working from the office. However, overall, a minority of both Gen X and Y professionals favor the office—28% of Gen Y, 19% of Gen X, and 6% of HR professionals. Among those employed by organizations that allow remote work, over 40% of Gen Y professionals find themselves most focused and productive when working from the office.
Driven by respondents in Germany and France, over 25% believe that by 2020, organizations will be more nationally or globally distributed, eliminating the need for managers and their teams to be co-located every day. Approximately two-thirds of professionals believe organizations embracing flexible, mobile, and remote work models have a competitive edge over those requiring traditional in-office hours.
While salary remains the most crucial factor for most, around one in five Gen X and Gen Y professionals, along with one-third of HR professionals, prioritize schedule flexibility or remote work options. Generally, professionals are reluctant to accept salary reductions in exchange for increased work flexibility. However, HR professionals are the most amenable to this trade-off, with 40% willing to take a pay cut. Similarly, HR professionals are open to larger pay cuts, with 56% accepting a reduction of over 10% compared to 35% of Gen Y and 34% of Gen X professionals.
Rowan Trollope, Senior Vice President of Cisco Collaboration, emphasizes the demand for readily available and robust communication and collaboration tools in today’s workplace. These tools are expected to be constantly accessible, global in reach, and usable across various devices. He highlights how the CCWTR findings offer valuable insights for businesses to gain a competitive edge in IT and HR decisions. These insights encourage new approaches to deploying workplace technology, recognizing that users will continue driving adoption while demanding exceptional experiences. The focus, he says, remains on providing a seamless user experience by offering tools that enhance productivity and work quality, irrespective of location or time.
Lance Perry, Vice President of IT Customer Strategy and Success at Cisco, stresses the report’s significance in understanding the priorities of the evolving workforce. He urges businesses to leverage these insights to adapt their strategies for attracting talent and shaping business models. Perry emphasizes the growing internet-centricity of the world, particularly with each new generation. He advises CIOs to proactively plan and scale their networks to address the security and mobility needs of the next-generation workforce. Moreover, he encourages using this information to evaluate and evolve corporate policies, positioning technology as a catalyst for collaboration and business success.
* The annual Cisco Connected World Technology Report analyzes the interplay between human behavior, the internet, and the pervasiveness of networking. It provides data on how companies can maintain competitiveness amidst the influence of technology on lifestyle trends. This fourth annual report, commissioned by Cisco and conducted by independent US-based market research firm InsightExpress, surveyed professionals aged 18 to 50 across 15 countries. The global report includes 100 respondents from each of the following countries: US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, Russia, Poland, India, China, Japan, South Korea, and Australia.