Workforce Development: View from Milken Institute Global Conference

Is the future of work, long tail workers? Yesterday, I attended the panel, “Workforce Development: A Differentiator in Hiring and Retaining,” at the Milken Institute Global Conference 2009. HR professionals from Cisco, Safeway, Deloitte, Korn/Ferry, and law firm Latham & Watkins all agreed that the downturn in the economy poses particular challenges for HR leaders. Now is a good time to seek out great talent, but companies are constrained by headcount. Several of the companies mentioned that turnover is very low right now; few people are leaving their current positions.

While reactions to the current moment were interesting, I was fascinated by how the workplace has changed as well.

Only 17% of workers come from a “traditional” family with a single breadwinner for the household. The workplace has new demands on employees and employees need more flexibility than ever before. Carol Lindstrom, Vice President at Deloitte & Touche described the company’s Mass Career Customization program. The organization recognizes that employees have different needs at different times in their lives. They work with HR counselors to understand when to “dial up or dial down” in four areas: pace, workload, location/schedule, and role.

Brian Schipper, Senior Vice President of HR at Cisco, shared results of Cisco Employee Surveys that found that employees spend 63% of their time communicating and collaborating and 35% of collaborative work is done virtually. Only 28% is done face-to-face. Managing a team in 9 time zones, Schipper explained, requires that he hold meetings outside the normal work day hours in San Jose, California. That means he’s working all the time, but that flexibility results in commitment, engagement, and in some ways more freedom.

These changes have real implications for the way we teach and train students. What I see with schools expanding their time and space boundaries with virtual learning and global connections are on the right track.