9 Ways Customers Can Benefit from an Integrated Portfolio

What is the Intelligent Connected Workplace?

By Kevin Kern, Konica Minolta – If there’s one thing we can safely say about the future of work, it’s that we are going through a significant period of change. With technological, social, environmental and generational shifts impacting our priorities, work can no longer be defined as a physical space we go to, neither does it relate to a set schedule of ‘on’ hours each day. And while the events of the past year have brought increased focus on what the future of work or the “next normal” will be, in reality work has been evolving steadily for years. Today we can stay connected almost anywhere, from home, in the office, while in the air or even on a cruise ship! This capability was critical for organizations to manage through the pandemic, and will continue to be a key priority in the months and years that follow.

However, the rapid deployment of staff from the office to remote work tested both the technology infrastructure and concept of remote work. Organizations struggled to maintain cultural connections with their associates, and those working remotely often had to come to terms with understanding how to connect to their workplace VPNs, juggling endless virtual meetings with interrupting family and/or roommates, and often managing childcare in the working day, too. As such, leaders of some of the largest providers of technology to support remote work have spoken of loss of connectedness, or announced they will be expecting all of their employees to be back in the office as soon as it is safe to do so.