By Jennifer Roth, Vice President of MarketingIn Part One of this four-part blog series, I talked about our changing world –  how today nearly every organization can think and behave globally. There really are no boundaries that prohibit us from doing business wherever our clients exist.Read more about JenNow I’d like to share a few thoughts on the impact mobilization has on organizations.

It’s a Mobile, Mobile, Mobile, Mobile World!

You may recognize the title of this blog post from the 1963 classic comedy, “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.” While mobility isn’t designed to drive us mad, it does have its implications on how organizations function. Whether you’re a global company with thousands of employees or a small business with a 20-person team, mobility changes how we interact with our people.Statistics Tell The Mobilization StoryIt’s no surprise that telecommuting increased 73% from 2005 – 2011. What is surprising however, is that by 2015 more than 1.3 billion workers will be mobile! Considering our global workforce consists of 3.2 billion people, this means a full one-third of the workforce will be classified as mobile workers next year!How do organizations manage a mobile workforce of this magnitude? As employees identify how they prefer to work, and organizations create new policies to allow for mobility and telecommuting, leaders must examine their workplace carefully. New work arrangements driven by mobilization mean you no longer need a cubicle for every employee, which means you should carefully reevaluate your real estate requirements.In a traditional office, up to half of all desks, offices and workstations go unused at any given point in a typical workday. It’s a real cost-savings opportunity if you adjust your office space needs to fit the demand of today’s workforce.To maximize smaller real estate footprints, you might consider open concept designs for office space. Companies will find it beneficial to offer employees shared workspace designed to unify the staff and promote synergy. The benefit here, of course, is you no longer have to maintain a significant real estate footprint to accommodate workspace needs.What’s more, modernizing traditional office space will further enable employees to maximize their time when they do come to the workplace. Here are a handful of common strategies that maximize the workspace for today’s mobile employee:

• Deploy hoteling software so employees can select and check in to their hotel cubicle for the day online.
• Use mobile apps so employees can reserve a space to park their car before they arrive on site.
• Provide kiosks that allow employees to quickly see if their co-workers are collaborating in a shared or common workspace.

Due to the increase in workforce mobilization, we’ve seen a steady rise in the implementation of resource scheduling and meeting room management software during the last three years. Companies are deploying Cloud-based solutions designed to help them track their employees as well as optimize existing office space. Mobile workers who need to use available office space can look up and reserve space via their web-browser, a dedicated kiosk, LCD touch panels, and mobile apps. And they can manage resources directly from their remote office location using their smartphones.By making access to available workspace easy, most any organization can accommodate the new demands of mobile workers, providing them with a positive, productive environment that feels high-tech and high-touch.

Learn More About…

Managing the Mobile WorkforceMobile Time and Labor ManagementMeeting Room Management

About Jen

 Jennifer Roth, Vice President of MarketingJennifer Roth joined Asure Software in 2012 and provides the company with 20 years of marketing, communications, branding, product marketing, product management and executive communication and leadership expertise. Previously, Jennifer served as founder of JKR Consulting Inc., where she specialized in creating end-to-end marketing strategies for global companies. She also held marketing roles at Ceridian, CIGNA Behavioral Health and United Health Group. Jennifer has an MBA from St. Thomas University, St. Paul, Minn., and a BA from the College of St. Benedict, St. Joseph, Minn. She is a member of the American Marketing Association.