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Workforce Management Leveraging technology and advances in communications allows Advances like Baxter, a new generation of robot from Rethink employees to work virtually. Along with reducing overhead, this Robotics, aim to make robotics affordable for any size organization. strategy can be highly attractive to a wide array of employees. Baxter costs just $22,000 and is considered so safe and simple According to Towers Watson, 47 percent of the 32,000 employees that workers unskilled in technology can train and operate the from large and midsize organizations surveyed in their 2012 Global machine, according to the company. Low interest rates, which allow Workforce Study work remotely or in flexible arrangements. companies to borrow money to upgrade facilities, make purchases One example of a company that has successfully made the of these robots even more affordable today. transition to a virtual workplace is security software company Symantec. Doing so required a shift in the company's focus—from Globo Robo when and where employees' work is done to employees' overall The adoption of robotics will spread throughout the world. In 2011, contributions and results. Managers underwent training on remote sales of robots increased by 38-percent globally, the highest level management, which covered how to: ever (see Figure 2). At present, Japan is the number one employer • Bring people from different cultures together into fluent teams; of robots in the world, but other countries are gaining quickly. • Communicate clearly and concisely; and China quadrupled its robot supply between 2006 and 2011, making • Evaluate employees on measurable deliverables, not the hours it the country with the largest growth of robot installations. Korea they work. has the highest robot density in the world, with a ratio of 247 robots to every 10,000 employees. Companies can also use a mixed employment strategy, creating a blended workforce of traditional full-time, part-time, remote, and contract workers. This mix enables a company to lower its overhead costs and better meet the ebbs and flows in demand. With more than 10 million workers or 7.4 percent of the U.S. FIGURE 2: YEAR-OVER-YEAR GROWTH OF ROBOT SALES IN 2011 population classified as independent contractors by the Bureau of PERCENTAGE INCREASE Labor Statistics, companies have a large pool of temporary workers to help them flexibly meet demand and control costs. In the U.S. TOTAL ROBOT SHIPMENTS alone, contract work grew four times faster than total employment over the last decade. U.S. 43% 20.555 We, Robots Canada 72% 1,848 125% 1,440 Today, the world sits on the cusp of another revolution. Much like the Industrial Revolution did nearly 200 years ago, the robotics Brazil revolution will significantly change the way the world works. Germany 39% 19,533 First introduced in the 1960s, industrial robots were designed United Kingdom 72% 1,514 Turkey 156% 864 Japan 27% 28,000 9% 25,536 51% 22,577 100% 1,547 38% 166,028 to perform rigid, predetermined repetitive movements—most commonly on assembly lines. Industrial robots typically cost more than $100,000 each, but where they become unattainable for smaller companies is in their upkeep. Maintenance, programming, and training expenses can be four times the original purchase price. Now, significant advances in technology have made robots smaller, nimbler, and more responsive. As a result, during the next 10 to 15 years, manufacturing and service industries will greatly increase their use of robotics. Republic of Korea China India Global average Already, manufacturing companies are seeing the benefits of robotics. In the past two years, U.S. manufacturers have hired nearly half a million employees thanks in part to robots. This By the end of the 21st century, 70 percent of today's occupations might seem counterintuitive, but automation enables companies might cease to exist, according to Wired magazine. Automation to reshore their operations. Rising wages in the developing world, will have replaced the human worker in many of the roles we specifically China, Mexico, and India, plus shipping and other currently play. Robots will replace assembly line workers, workers costs have made offshoring more expensive. By employing more in warehouses, fruit and vegetable pickers, pharmacists, cleaning affordable, nimble robots—and the staff who can program and run crews, long-distance freight drivers, and likely many other jobs. these tools—manufacturers are able to keep factories stateside and In the relocation industry, robots might eventually replace other remain competitive. skilled workers, too. [50] HRO TODAY MAGAZINE | MAY 2013