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A Spot Of “Realisation”

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Taranjeet Singh

In the past two years, there has been a lot of discussion about the nature of work, including the model of how we need to behave while we are at work –  is it a work-from-home, a work-from-office, a hybrid, or is it a work-from-anywhere situation? And of course, there is the whole issue about resignations and how they are affecting us as employees as well as employers as a massive trend that has to be taken into consideration.

It is indisputable that the previous twenty-four months have witnessed enormous shifts in the manner in which we live, conduct business, and perform our jobs. It is also abundantly obvious that the manner in which organisations function not just externally with their customers, but also internally with their personnel has been subjected to a number of changes. What is also apparent to me is that employees now have virtually instantaneously access to a vast array of possibilities in the manner in which they view the world and, more importantly, the interactions they have with one another.

My curiosity leads me to wonder if this is a recent development.

Absolutely not. With the introduction of laptops, mobile devices, and various other types of technology, whether they take the shape of platforms, products, or anything else, we have seen changes, however minute they may be, taking place throughout the previous three to four decades. This has, in turn, led to a transformation in the mental model of how organisations view the processes that are performed to provide the outputs that are desired, but more importantly, this has led to a change in viewpoint regarding how they view their staff base.

In the latter part of the 2000s, the global outsourcing agenda began to gain traction. The idea behind reorganising the workforce into revenue drivers, core support teams, and extended support teams came about as a way to save expenses, repurpose the company, and concentrate on its core. Reducing costs was one of the primary goals of this endeavour. And this is where the agenda of outsourcing began in a significant sense, by “hiving away” the extended assistance to make them more effective merely through considerations of economy of scale or through the development of profound expertise. It was obvious that it did not make any sense for an organisation to “own” this space when the cost of ownership could be greatly lowered if such a function or team of persons were shared resources, and in turn, those shared resources were shared with others, for a profit.

It would not be too long before various global crises, such as the sub-prime mortgage crisis of the late 2000s, the health concerns pillared on MERS (2012), the Zika Virus (2016), and most recently, the CoVid-19 (2020), amongst other things, had implications on the way in which businesses functioned, operated, and managed their staff. Closer to home, the development of digital platforms that allowed for fluid workflows within the organisation, in addition to technological and communication platforms, went on to strengthen the job options that were already in play. Taking everything into consideration, you now have something that resembles a genuine workforce based on “gigs.” Despite the fact that there is no agreed-upon definition of what a “Gig Worker” is, the term is now generally understood to encompass all potential forms of a contingently based workforce. This ranges from individuals whose work is performed for a predetermined amount of time during the course of a project to a wider range of people whose jobs are made easier by the use of online platforms or technology.

The growth of the Giggers has been especially notable throughout the course of the most recent few years. There has been a lot of discussion regarding the fact that it is anticipated that more than fifty per cent of the workforce in the United States will be based on gig work by the year 2030, as well as the effect that this will have on the structure of the workforce in Europe and the APAC region, respectively. The Gig Economy is clearly here to stay, as evidenced by projections that it will be worth USD455 billion by 2023 with a CAGR of almost 18%.

The following list includes some of the elements that have unwittingly promoted this style of employment:

  • The availability of and engagement with pervasive user-friendly platforms;
  • The liberty and independence afforded to workers to carry out their work responsibilities in the manner and to the extent of their choosing;
  • The unbroken connection between one’s personal life and work life;
  • The ability to generate additional revenue from a wide variety of lawful sources; and
  • The idea of income security versus job security;

This said, is it truly remarkable to comment that the notion of the “Great Resignation” was most unexpected? Was it really the curve ball that it’s been made out to be by the pundits and that indeed no one saw it coming? Was this an event which was totally unpredicted?

This writer contends that there is no real need to term this event as “great”, instead it’s a process that has occurred in the past and will continue to occur in the years to come. In fact, it’s the usual process of life on the proverbial freeway of the individual’s mode of realisation. Hence the apt title of this paper, a “spot of Realisation”.

I find it increasingly absurd that the word “great” is being used to characterise the resignations that are taking shape right now. There is nothing in the least bit great about what is happening. To this Writer, it only serves to emphasise the following points once more:

  • The yearning to exert greater control on one’s own time schedule;
  • The intrinsic desire for one’s labour to be compensated in a manner that more adequately reflects the amount of effort that it requires;
  • The necessity for the employer to have a closer relationship with their existing workforce in order to have a better understanding of how things are actually developing on the ground; and
  • To have a greater degree of command and influence on one’s future direction.

These are not novel considerations. In fact, they have been playing out for as long as there have been employees working for employers. So instead of focusing on what could be the possible ramifications arising from the “resignation” of the employees, it is suggested that we should instead be looking at the possible outcomes of this Realisation by employees of their larger calling. The following questions need to be asked:

  1. With “fractal” employment comes the great potential of income security. How would Giggers view such terms of employment and what relationships can they enter into with organisations where there exists no conflict of interest at best, or such conflict is duly mitigated, at worst?
  2. From an organisation’s perspective, how would it view the effective management of Giggers, bearing in mind that they are no longer part of its permanent workforce?
  3. Who is responsible for the development of talent, is it the organisation or the Giggers themselves? After all, if the talent is no longer “owned” by the organisation, does it still have a responsibility to ensure that it is developed accordingly? Are organisations now absolved of such responsibilities altogether and this now rests on the shoulders of the employee?
  4. Finally, given that this Realisation leads to the distinct possibility of Giggers able to transcend themselves to playing in a variety of geographies, we are left with pertinent questions around compensation and recognition of their work. What hourly rates will they be paid? What would the benchmark rates be? What foreign exchange currency will apply? Who will be responsible for in-country tax filings and declarations, if any?

You will notice that the points brought up indicate that the employee resignations that we are currently dealing with should not be viewed as being “great,” but rather should be viewed as being a part of the evolution that the employee base has always been going through. The availability of platforms to work from, the changing business operating models that are prevalent, the ability to work from anywhere, and the support provided by the organisation for a variety of working environments have allowed the employees unfettered access to conditions that have never before existed. What we are witnessing right now is the aftermath of the proverbial perfect storm. And to this end, we are not in a position to neither blame the rain nor the winds; rather, we should take pleasure in the Realisations that come with such weather cycles.

Taranjeet Singh is CEO of Quantum Steppe Advisory and Chair of the Regional Board of the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) Malaysia. Taranjeet has returned to Malaysia after living and working in Central Asia for the past several years. For more information, you may email him here.

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