As business owners, we recognize that our people are our greatest assets. For many of us, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced us to re-think our workplaces and workforces. We’ve experienced the office as a ghost town, with perhaps one or two of us haunting the hallways while others work remotely. We’ve experienced human resources as an Olympic event with changes in hours, sick leave and family leave, employee benefits, remote work policies, State and local regulations, the CARES Act, and perhaps reluctantly guiding our organizations through furloughs or layoffs. 

Here at SumnerOne, since it’s early in the year, we’re thinking a lot about trends for 2020—and beyond—and how they’ll affect our customers in the small business and corporate spaces alike. We recently wrote about making time to create business resolutions and how to implement a mobile workplace strategy. There are several technology solution trends that we’ll be discussing in later blogs, but two trends that are exciting us right now are metamorphic design and corporate burnout.

4.7 million employees now work from home at least half the time. In fact, working from home has grown by 173% since 2005, 11% faster than the rest of the workforce and nearly 47x faster than the self-employed population, says a frequently updated trend report from Global Workplace Analytics. With such large growth, the numbers clearly speak to mutual benefits for both workers and employers. But what are some of those benefits? And, can you just send your employees away from the office—armed with smartphones and laptops—and say, “Go forth, mobile workforce! I’m sure you’ll be fine!” No, before employees and organizations can benefit from flexible working, certain tools need to be put in place to implement a mobile workplace strategy.

Chances are, you’ve been on the reduce, reuse, and recycle bandwagon for a while. You’re committed to doing what you can to being environmentally friendly and energy efficient, hoping to protect the planet for generations to come. But it’s possible that you didn’t know that your efforts to reduce your carbon footprint are made easier through technology advances. Furthermore, you also may not realize that the sustainable practices or products and services you’re offering at your business are improving your appeal to consumers and thus improving your bottom line.

Technological advancements have been transforming and changing the way most organizations do business. It is no secret that the print industry in the US is no exception, as many forward-thinking companies have long been finding new ways to make their business more profitable. It is evident that workflow automation is still one of the hottest and most important topics among almost all printing establishments. While manufacturers and producers continue to introduce new and innovative products on the market, commercial printers are gradually moving into using automation in varying degrees.

We’re all looking for the secret to long-term business success. What is the key to keeping our organization safe from the next, big economic downturn? (2008 seems like a long time ago, but business owners are still feeling the effects.) How can I preserve what I’ve built? How can I protect my 100 employees—or more—from job loss or underemployment? I’ll tell you something a secret—there is no secret.

With each technology replacement we purchase, we’re always looking for new and exciting ways to upgrade. When contracts are up on our mobile phones, we look at things like reception, memory, speed, and camera quality. When you put the newest phones next to each other, however, there’s not a lot that sets them apart. Until there’s a real game changer in the bunch—remember when the first smartphones came to market? The first iPhone? The first Android?—there isn’t much to get excited about. When looking for a new multi-function printer (MFP), there are several upgrades to consider as well, depending on essential work demands and business goals, but there hasn’t been an option like the Canon imagePRESS Lite C165 before.