The new Social Media workforce generation

With the rapid expansion of the social media world, recent college graduates are inquiring at job interviews about social media policies, work-from-home potential, and the ability to work-on-the-go. This is not much of a surprise as the Internet era, which began 10-15 years ago, has also connected the world in ways that allow people to be connected and communicate from a "virtual" office anywhere in the world. Whether at home, in the car, a hotel room, or a Starbucks, clients, colleagues, and additional workplace community members can still maintain the same level of communication and professionalism from the individual who is working virtually.

A recent study by Cisco has confirmed the desire by new college graduates to work remotely. In fact, workplace mobility and the flexibility to perform job functions outside of the physical confines of an office environment is such a priority that it surpasses salary (!) in some instances, as noted in Cisco's survey. For more details and findings from Cisco, please visit: http://mashable.com/2011/11/08/work-from-home-2/

Having managed teams in the US and China for multiple companies, I have grown to become a big fan of productivity over clocked hours. When an individual has an employment contract, in which performance is tied to and rewarded based on achieving goals and productivity, it does not matter to me where an employee is working. Of course, within reason. For me, 50% of time at the office, and 50% of time working remotely, is a schedule I grew comfortable with in China. Because for me, performance is measured by productivity. If an individual can work 4 - 5 hours from home and still achieve all objectives as required, I, as a manager, am OK with that. In this day of decreasing financial perks offered by companies due to the Great Recession, workplace flexibility is one of the non-financial perks companies can offer employees. Here's to hoping it takes a strong hold!