员工到底要什么？

    心理学家亚伯拉罕•马斯洛在1943年引入了“需求层次”的概念，据此阐述了人们获得激励以满足某些基本需求（食品、水、安全），然后才能追求其它更高层次的需求，比如创造和自我实现。

    如果我们借鉴这种方法来考察公司，现代公司员工到底需要什么？显然人们期望公司会满足员工的基本工作“需求”：有竞争力的薪酬、合适的工作环境，但现代公司也意识到他们需要做更多工作，以培育创造力、推动创新以及提升工作效率。

    很多时候，公司首先要做的就是提供多种选择和自由，特别是与移动相关的选择。现在的趋势是，人们想要选择何时何地、以何种方式工作的自由，他们也想要拥有自由，可以使用自己的移动设备。

    这个趋势被称为在工作环境“自带设备”，简称为BYOD。它不仅仅意味着在个人设备上收发、查阅电邮，也能使用会议、视频和其它能帮助他们提升工作效率的应用。不管公司规模大小，对精明的领导人来说，评估各种能让员工“按自己的方式工作”，同时又不会损害安全或者知识产权的新方法就变得至关重要。

    技术已经彻底地改变了当今社会，公司必须适应这些变化。不妨看看下面这些数据：

    ——根据思科（Cisco）对600名美国IT界领袖的最新调查，40%的受访者指出“设备选择”是员工最大的BYOD优先考虑；第二优先考虑是能够在个人时间内工作，以及在工作时间内处理个人事务。

    ——思科的另一项调查显示，在14个国家的2,800名大学生和年轻员工中，超过半数的人声称自己已经离不开互联网，认为那是“生活不可分割的一部分”。更有甚者，如果被迫在使用互联网和使用汽车之间做出选择，全球大部分大学生都会选择网络。

    ——世界范围内，移动网络上的数据流量很快将会超过固网上的数据流量。思科预测，移动网络上的数据到2016年将增长18倍，超过固网上的数据流量。增长的推动力何在？不妨看看全世界范围内连接到宽带网上的移动设备的激增。

    人们想要按自己的方式工作，为此他们也想尽办法。他们甚至愿意规避公司的IT部门，只为了能使用自己喜欢的设备和服务。看看下面这些数据：

    ——我们调查的每5个大学生和年轻员工中，就有超过两人声称即使少拿点工资，也愿意接受在设备选择、社交媒体连接及移动使用方面更有弹性的工作，而不愿选择规定严格的高工资职位。

    ——思科对公司IT部门主管的调查表明，他们觉得BYOD的最大两个好处就是提升员工的工作效率（更多合作机会）和更高的工作满意度。

    展望未来，员工可望互相连接、分享和合作，不管是在家中、咖啡店、机场、客户公司，甚至是在上下班的火车上。经过优化改进的可靠网络将提升互联网连接，使其加入亚伯拉罕•马斯洛在70年前提出的“需求层次”。

    简而言之，实现员工“按自己的方式工作”是公司保持竞争优势所需的基本政策。没错，数据和知识产权必须得到保护，这也是智能网络不可或缺的原因之一。但万能的公司IT技术并不存在，公司如果坚持死板的移动政策，就可能失去员工的信任，更关键的是，可能会失去他们的创造性。

    In 1943, psychologist Abraham Maslow introduced the concept now known as "The Hierarchy of Needs" in which he outlined how people are motivated to fulfill certain basic needs (food, water, safety) before moving on to other, more advanced needs, such as creativity and self-actualization.

    If we use that lens to look at our businesses, what are the needs of the modern employee? While companies are expected to fulfill employees basic "needs" to do their job -- competitive pay, a functional workspace -- modern organizations understand they need to do more to foster creativity, drive innovation and improve productivity.

    In many cases, topping the list is enabling choice and freedom especially as it pertains to mobility. Increasingly, people want to choose when, where and how they work -- and they also want the freedom to use their own devices.

    This trend is referred to as "Bring Your Own Device," or BYOD, in work environments. That means not only having access to email on their personal devices, but conferencing, video and other applications that help them be more productive. It's critical that savvy business leaders at companies large and small evaluate new and different ways to let employees "work their way" without compromising security or intellectual property.

    Technology has fundamentally changed today's society and organizations must adapt. Consider this:

    • According to the recent Cisco (CSCO) study, which surveyed 600 U.S. IT leaders, 40% of the respondents cited "device choice" as employees' top BYOD priority, with the second being the ability to do work during personal time, and vice versa.

    • According to a different Cisco report, more than half of 2800 college students and young employees surveyed in 14 countries say they cannot live without the Internet and cite it as an "integral part of their lives." In fact, if forced to make a choice between access to the Internet or a car, the majority of college students globally would choose an Internet connection.

    • The volume of worldwide mobile data traffic on mobile networks will soon eclipse the volume of data traffic on fixed networks. My company forecasts that data over mobile networks will increase 18-fold by 2016, eclipsing the volume of data on fixed networks. Driving this growth? A big jump in the number of mobile 'Net-connected devices running on broadband networks being deployed worldwide.

    People want to work their way and are trying desperately to do so. They're even willing to end-run their corporate IT departments to use the devices and services that please them. Consider this:

    • More than two of five college students and young employees we talked to said they would accept a lower-paying job that had more flexibility with regard to device choice, social media access, and mobility than a higher-paying job with less flexibility.

    • Cisco's survey of corporate IT leaders noted that the top two perceived benefits of BYOD are improved employee productivity (more opportunities to collaborate) and greater job satisfaction.

    Going forward, workers will expect to connect, share and work collaboratively from home, a café, an airport, at a client's location and even on a commuter train. Improved, robust, optimized networks elevate Internet connectivity into that "Hierarchy of Needs" Abraham Maslow identified nearly 70 years ago.

    Simply put, enabling "work your way" is essential policy for a business to maintain a competitive edge. Yes, data and intellectual property must be protected and that's another reason the intelligent network is a critical component. That said, there's no one-size-fits-all for corporate technology, and companies that take a hard-line risk losing the hearts and, crucially, the minds of their employees.