HOME > WHAT WE DO

The Future of Work Program

In 2007 we are focusing our research, advisory services, and community activities on three primary themes:

• The impact of the work environment on employee engagement
• Designing and implementing distributed work programs
• Developing community-based remote work centers

We complement our formal research with a series of online polls, teleconference discussions with thought leaders, and periodic working sessions for sponsors and members.

For a complete description of our current programs, visit the Membership Programs page.

Working Groups

Each year we conduct several focused Working Groups to build knowledge and new diagnostic tools on specific issues of common concern. Each group is composed of a minimum of three organizations who share a common interest in a particular topic or product development opportunity. Working Group participants share in research and product development design, combining their experiences and expertise to produce new knowledge and management tools.

Products

We currently offer and support three primary diagnotistic management tools:

• The Organizational Assessment System (OAS)
• The Workforce Survey
• The ROI Calculator

These tools are available for licensing (there is a patent pending application in process). We also provide educational and advisory services to support their effective use in organizations. For more information about acquiring a license or a management briefing about these tools and our national normative database of experience, please contact us.

Consulting Services

Although the primary focus of the Work Design Collaborative is knowledge development and community building, our principals and associates are available for individual research, advisory, and consulting projects.

For a list of recent clients and projects, see our Consulting Services page. To inquire about engaging us and to discuss our fee structure, please contact us directly.

Quick-Start Workshop

One of our most popular means of supporting organizations interested in launching alternative work programs is what we like to call a "Quick-Start Workshop." We combine an on-site management briefing with concentrated data collection and organizational assessment process to provide specific recommendations and action plans over an intense three days of work.

For more information, please read our Quick-Start Workshop page, or contact us directly.

Business Community Centers^TM

One of the most striking findings of our 2002/3 research program was an extraordinary growth in the use of "Third Places" by knowledge workers (a Third Place is anywhere that work is done away from a central corporate facility or an individual home office). We have now developed a vision of a community-based remote work center that we call a "Business Community Center^TM"

As a result of our personal fascination with this phenomenon we are conducting a major long-terem research initiative aimed at understanding the market demand in more detail and eventually developing a new business venture to address the unmet needs of workers for temporary but convenient office space, meeting facilities, and office services.

For more information about the research, see the Third Places page, or contact us directly.

Our Book - Corporate Agility

In Corporate Agility, Charles Grantham, James Ware, and Cory Williamson explore a new strategic model designed to enable organizations to compete effectively in a flat, global economy. For more information about the book, go to the book description page.

   ©Copyright 2003 The Work Design Collaborative, LLC. All rights reserved. Website development by InMotionMedia, Inc

Photo provided by Neal Zimmerman, author of "At Work At Home"