Beyond a movement, the Future of Work is about applying future-thinking values to your companies. These are some companies that have gone above and beyond in promoting employee recognition.
Spotify
Employee wellness is at the forefront of Spotify–music to our ears. As part of its hiring efforts, Spotify engages in “fika”, a social coffee break custom where interviewees grab coffee with 4-5 employees. There’s something different about taking an interview virtually over Zoom or at an office compared to a coffee shop. A coffee shop allows for less stoicism and more authenticity, as the backdrop of a coffee shop gives an interviewer the freedom to feel more comfortable.
What’s your work mode? Spotify allows employees to choose their own work mode, where they can work from seasonally-based workspaces or work entirely remotely. Being able to choose HOW you work best is a novelty that shouldn’t go unnoticed.
Slack
Communication is the key to working well and Slack does it effectively! Slack created a consortium called Future Forum which is “focused on building a way of working that is flexible, inclusive, and connected.” This push for content and redefinition of work building is the heart of the future of work.
Its emphasis on distributed communication and audio-first meetings is another component of the future of work.
Chili Piper
Remote first and professional development–it’s a match truly made in jobseeker heaven. Chili Piper is a startup that helps sales teams schedule appointments with leads. It recently attracted 7,500 applicants solely from making Tik Tok videos. It’s not just about the videos, but the authenticity aspect. Jobseekers want to feel connected to a cause and want an environment that embraces authenticity.
Chili Piper offers a remote-first mentality, a stipend for in-person meetings, employee training, annual company trips, and unlimited vacation.
Scoutible
Meet hiring with a twist. Scoutible is on a mission to make hiring fun and immersive. How, you ask? Scoutible’s “proprietary gaming technology discovers players’ essential cognitive and personality traits…as they interact with our immersive game world.” This unconventional hiring practice means an emphasis on what really matters: grit, soft skills, and curiosity. It’s a welcome new approach to hiring and provides the perfect humanized edge the future of work is all about.
STADIUM
Here at STADIUM, we live, breathe, and exude the future of work. Our focus on working from anywhere, asynchronous communication, and a flat hierarchy are all aspects we believe will define the future of work.
The future of work is centered around emotion. That’s why our daily Friday meetings are also a platform for employees to get to know each other, as we have “get to know me” portions of meetings where employees delve into their biographies. It’s the little human touches that make us
Anywell
A global team means endless timezones to coordinate. Anywell “paves the way for innovative companies to take care of their distributed teams’ environmental needs”, by providing office amenities and working spaces, right in your neighborhood.
Companies can sponsor Anywell as a way to promote employee wellness. Being able to give employees the freedom to choose their workspace for the day is a symbolic way to show employee appreciation.
Upwork
Freelancing is the perfect remote worker’s dream. Being able to freelance means being able to work wherever, on your own time, and on your terms. Read Upwork’s Future Forward Report and you’ll discover the impact remote work has on today’s workforce.
Upwork is a remote-first company with two offices for in-person collaboration. Its focus on diversity, inclusion and belonging is evident in its ‘One Upwork’ community that “creates spaces that center the professional goals and needs of all Upwork employees who identify as LGBTQIA+, Black, Hispanic/Latino, Pan-Asian, veterans, women, caregivers, and/or neurodiverse.”
Loom
Loom believes “work is an act, not a place.” Not only can you work from anywhere, Loom values asynchronous communication and even uses third-party tools to “audit each of our [their] job descriptions for gendered, ethnocentric, or otherwise biased language.” This approach to eliminating bias and creating an inclusive space is exactly what the future of work is about.
Loom also “ties compensation to role”, ensuring pay equity. The future of work is about putting employees first and equity is just the tip of the iceberg.
If the future of work is important to you, it’s crucial to find companies that exemplify these values. After all, all it takes is a single employee that believes in the value of the future of work to go forth and inspire with their ideals.