The Virtual Office – New Emerging Trend, Alternative to Conventional Offices
Posted on 02. Sep, 2013 by Danielle in Virtual offices
We are in the midst of a revolution in the modern working environment, and it is called the virtual office. The virtual office is transforming the way enterprises operate, our working environment, and the way people live. Many businesses are able to drastically reduce the amount of formal office space that they occupy by hiring workers who work out of their own virtual office.
Alternative to Conventional Offices
There is no doubt that technology has catalysed this transformation. There is no longer the need for employees to convene in one office when they have the ability to easily coordinate their activities and share ideas electronically. People can communicate rapidly and at low cost using tools such as Skype and many others to set up meetings and all types of documents can also be shared at a very low cost. As a consequence, conventional hierarchies are disintegrating and traditional workplace schedules are fading away.
Altering The Entrepreneurial Landscape
The thing that enables this trend to proliferate so rapidly is that it is the lifeblood of the entrepreneurial strategy around the globe. Over the past several decades we witnessed how traditional manufacturing industries have been overshadowed by service industries. The next big workplace transformation is the ubiquitousness of virtual office spaces and the flexible working schedule and how they are altering the entrepreneurial enterprises which power the growth of business.
In an era of global warming and increased attention to environmental issues, it is also advantageous for people to work from virtual offices, since they will tend to generate less air pollution, since they no longer have to commute to and from work. This trend also helps to relieve traffic congestion in busy metropolitan areas. In addition, since people do not have to spend time travelling to and from work, they have more time to do additional work, and to engage in recreational activities.
Working from a virtual office does have some drawbacks. Although communication with others is very good in a modern virtual office, there is still a portion of the communicative process that suffers when there is not a face-to-face meeting. In addition, workers tend to become isolated and they frequently miss the human interaction that occurs in a traditional office environment.
Securing The Virtual Office
Employers and governments alike are increasingly making use of virtual office workers. However, many are concerned about the susceptibility of data that is passed between virtual office workers. Hence, there are numerous initiatives under way for securing data in a virtual office environment. This is of the utmost importance for those working in financial services and healthcare, where the security of personal and corporate data is of the utmost importance.
Synopsis
The modern working environment is being transformed by the virtual office and it has already begun to alter the way enterprises operate and the way people work. It also has the potential to influence the way people live and have a positive impact on the environment. This trend is accelerating at a rapid rate and increasing numbers of workers will no longer work in a traditional office environment.