Canadian HR Strategy

12/CANADIAN HR STRATEGY W hen Siemens developed a new hearing aid for children, it had a bit of a problem on its hands. The company, which has plenty of experience building products such as el- evators and large machinery, didn't have the specialized marketing expertise to launch the new device. It could have focused on building that expertise internally or used resources to hire new marketers with relevant experience. But instead of knocking on the marketing department's door, it partnered with Dis- ney — which knows a thing or two about marketing to children and was a company Siemens already had a relationship with because it helped it build rides for the theme park. That's an example of how work is being thought about and conduct- ed differently, according to John Boudreau, a professor of management and organization at the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. The idea of thinking about the work, not the employees, is a trend the C-suite should be keeping a tab on, he said. "A lot of the CHROs I'm working with are beginning to see a rather signifi cant change in the nature of work, how it's defi ned and how it gets done, and a much more fundamental need to say, 'Before we think about employment and jobs and things like that, we need to have a framework that starts by thinking about what is the work that needs to be done and then ask what's the best way to do it?'" said Boudreau, who is also research director at the Center for Effective Organizations at USC. "More and more of the work is moving to an arrangement that doesn't USC management guru John Boudreau unveils the biggest changes coming to your workplace Face Work Work Work Work Face Work Face Work Work Work Work Work Work Work The Changing By Sarah Dobson PHOTO: MARIO ANZUONI (REUTERS) of Face of Face of Work of Work Face Work Face of Face Work Face Work of Work Work of Work

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