DEVCOM released a future of work concept paper to its workforce of more than 25,000 civilians, Soldiers and contractors after surveying the workforce for their opinions on telework during the global pandemic in 2020. The new future of work concept was developed from best practices learned and momentum from the pandemic. The concept embraces remote work, flexible work schedules and innovative hiring practices.
One of the most significant aspects of the concept is the opportunity to attract and retain the ‘best talent anywhere’ by eliminating boundaries and opening talent pools that were previously untapped. This will not only enable the command to compete effectively in an increasingly competitive talent market, but also posture talent for the future.
DEVCOM’s ‘work where and when you are most productive’ philosophy is a key part of the concept. Thousands of DEVCOM employees currently collaborate across the globe under the strategic guidance of the Army Futures Command, leveraging cutting-edge technologies including synthetic biology, autonomy, robotics, and artificial intelligence to empower the American Warfighter. The command hopes to increase collaboration by forming geographically dispersed, cross-competency/cross-organization teams to rapidly deliver integrated solutions.
DEVCOM’s future of work concept is a key component of the command’s Competency-Driven Talent Management Strategy. The defined competencies serve as a basis for implementing new strategies that will be developed. These strategies will maximize flexibility and adopt the elements of the concepts, tailored to the unique aspects and demands of the different domains and competencies. DEVCOM’s future of work implementation plan includes working through security and IT challenges, reevaluating facility and infrastructure use, and exploring the balance between mission requirements and employees’ preferences. The command also plans to retrain supervisors to manage hybrid teams and help remote employees establish work/life balance to avoid burnout. DEVCOM will continue to prioritize engaging with employees through open communication, active listening, productive feedback, considering employees’ preferences and continuous coaching.