The past years have seen technology evolve at the workplace. From changing the way people work, the rise of virtual offices to evolving office cultures, technology is certainly reshaping the workplace.
Unlike in the traditional era where organisations used to value physical attendance of human resources, the current workspace values this less compared to expected results, according to Richard Mugisha, Regional Coordinator at International Training Institute for Skills Development.
He says, in today’s business world, human resource has grown to be the most critical asset of an organisation.
"Technological developments have shifted this human resource management Paradigm from physical appearance at office and evaluation of employee performance is result-based,” Mugisha says.
With this new paradigm, the regional coordinator reveals that organisations are spending millions in human resource development strategies so as to ensure continuity in availability of a capable workforce.
"As global competition intensifies, operational executives are adopting new concepts and technologies to increase productivity and quality. However due to the introduction of technology at workplace, the budget for computerised maintenance systems, implementation and optimisation is also too high and maintenance is becoming a focus for competitive advantage.”
Winnie Umuhoza, a business woman says with the current pandemic forcing many to work from home, technology is the basic tool that’s enabling businesses to move forward.
To help maintain social distancing, a big number of the workforce has been working from home. Working remotely during this pandemic has only been possible with technology.
Umuhoza says the advancement of technology has enforced a complete shift in how employers and employees utilise their time.
"Use of technology has hence increased time efficiency and management which gives a chance to also increase productivity. It has also paved way for more creativity hence increased growth of companies,” she adds.
According to Max Mutangana, an operations officer, businesses and managers need to comprehend the fact that technology is reforming the workplace, and they should position themselves by having the right tools to help them stay ahead.
He points out communication as the most important aspect to be impacted by technology. "This has improved connection between managers and their subordinates as well as between co-workers themselves, irrespective of where individuals could be.”
Mutangana notes that such efficiency with communication helps teams to be more engaged, more efficient but also, boosts teamwork.
The downside of this however is that people are consistently working and this can cause burn out.
"With technology, workers can basically work from anywhere; this means it is difficult for them to disengage from work. They hence end up working for longer hours and even on weekends when they are supposed to be resting.”
Umuhoza highlights that though technology comes with numerous benefits for companies, it also comes with challenges that both managers and employees have to deal with.
For instance, the costs required to invest in the required technology may at times be high, something that can lead to increased costs of productivity.
On the other hand, the rise of technology has placed needless anxiety on the side of employees, with most wondering if at some point technology will replace them.
"Most people are worried about the future of the workplace, they wonder whether they will still have their jobs or they will be replaced by technology. Some departments have now been resized and having most of the work being handled by technology. Other positions have been completely removed and this applies to careers that will be outdated after a certain period of time,” she says.
Umuhoza therefore notes that employees and managers need to keep themselves up to date with the evolving technology in order to keep themselves relevant in the workforce.