The Working world changes. Drivers are digital technologies and changing values. the coronaCrisis has the big Change only accelerated, it also offers opportunities. An overview.

Digitization in Germany: suddenly it works!

Digitization, the entry of many companies into so-called new territory, has been rather sluggish in Germany for a long time with many defensive reactions according to the motto "we've always done it this way". Well, due to the Corona crisis, a lot of things that had been missed for years had to be completely fast be made up for - from eLearning to the Work organization included in the home office Privacy to digital video conferences and entire events, all of which have now been moved online.

The Improvisation worked amazingly well in many cases, hats off to so much innovative spirit, especially in the digital industry, especially at the events, some of which were online in 2 days, I was surprised by that myself. It also showed what is possible when you let people do their thing. However, it must be said in fairness that the switch to Online worked extremely well, especially with very digitally savvy people.

Employer: fear of losing control?

For many others, the unfamiliar situation revealed what critic have been complaining for a long time: Germany is often not really digitized at all. Just those IT- security in the home office Companys facing huge challenges. But the organization of work is also completely different.

This becomes clear at the latest when you see the seemingly funny webinars from some HR departments with which they use their Employees also try to discipline in the home office. From firmly adhering to a dress code, there is that Rede. And about not going shopping during working hours. The Anxiety before loss of control seems big – probably is our book title Dealing with loss of control not for nothing one of the most common downloads.

Work more efficiently: error analysis instead of blaming

All of this could lead to a radical change in traditional forms of work. At best, work could become more self-determined, creative and democratic. In the worst case, workers exploit themselves and become slaves to their electronic devices at all times. Here are some practical examples.

In the Japanese automaker Toyota one works according to the KaizenMethod: The first question is never who is responsible for an error, but the first thing to analyze is how this error came about and how it can be eliminated quickly and permanently. Production is therefore not considered a subordinate area at Toyota, but the last and most important instance of quality control. Because a Problem in production cannot be solved at a desk three floors up.

Participation in the production process

If a problem occurs, every employee can stop the production process at any time and make a suggestion for improvement. Then employees, production managers and engineers or logisticians get together on site and work on a catalog of Ask ex: Why did this happen? Could the problem be repeated in other parts of the production? How do we ask for surethat it does not occur again?

The Objective is not the huge leap in innovation, but a calm, continuous improvement that takes place in small steps, about which everyone involved - employees, supervisors and customers - keep exchanging ideas. Everyone knows that they need the others for this process: and that the way to the goal sometimes takes detours.

Corona crisis: Sudden change because it has to be

Also the Spanish automaker Seat showed in the middle of the corona crisis, which can suddenly work even in large corporations if it has to. In just a few days, the company switched production to the breathing devices that hospitals urgently needed, which were made by windshield wiper motors. Who the bureaucratic Structure and knows the sluggish hierarchy in large corporations, knows what a great story that is. Even production director Christian Vollmer seems to have been surprised:

“In such a large corporation, everyone looks very closely at their own area. Suddenly it is different: How we get out of this emergency situation from a company Team have formed, who for a few weeks forgets every hiccup, every resentment and does not primarily think about their own successes, is a really great experience. "

Digital working world of the future: Loss of control - opportunities & risks

New Work & New Pay: Set your own salary and vacation?

There is pure democracy in Hanover and Stuttgart Management consulting Vollmer and Scheffczyk: Here everyone puts his employees salary himself and also decides when and how long he or she goes on vacation. Always with the option of increasing or decreasing your salary at any time. However, they must be able to justify their decisions in front of their colleagues: everyone can look at all the books and always knows how things are going Company stands. Reason: Employees who run after a carrot like bonus payments always only show so much Commitment, as the carrot yields.

But VundS wants people who are familiar with their job clear identify and who really care about the well-being of the company and the clients. And that is only possible if you abolish all incentive systems and completely intrinsic Motivation puts. The employees actually put the company, the client, first. Because the topic "Money” is from the Head. Labor costs have not increased. There is an internal social Network: Everyone who has achieved something, for example a customer workshop with good results, blogs the whole thing. Instead of a bonus fight, the executives notice more identification with the company and enthusiasm for work.

Digital slave labor or beauty contest for every project?

But where there is light, there is also shadow, as is well known: Because social change also harbors dangers: This is what happened to IBM recently negative in the headlines. In Germany alone, the company wants to cut up to 8000 jobs, but that's not all. Because the plan is apparently part of a fundamental reorganization of work structures.

According to an internal paper IBM wanted to radically change the way it interacted with its workforce. In the future, the group should only be managed by a small core workforce. IBM, on the other hand, wants to recruit specialists and skilled workers on an Internet platform it has set up specifically for this purpose. Freelancers from all over the world should meet there Welt present and be certified according to certain quality criteria designed by IBM. Or to put it another way: The employees have to put in a lot of effort to chase after the carrot and the company picks out the raisins.