In an effort to boost employee productivity, more companies are now formally encouraging their employees to nap during the workday — in some cases, even providing designated areas meant for employee napping. Nike and Google are among those leading the charge in this area.

For a long time, encouraging “sleeping on the job” would have been considered counter-intuitive to productivity. However, a growing body of research indicates that productivity increases as people are better-rested. A recent Stanford study suggests that Americans average fewer than 7 hours of sleep per night (far fewer than are recommended to be both healthy and productive), and around 20 percent of Americans suffer from sleepiness during the day. As a result, companies in aggregate can save several billions of dollars per year.

In many cases, people report to work without receiving the proper amount of sleep the night before, and this actually hurts their overall productivity and ability to focus on the tasks at hand. The causes of sleep deprivation and fatigue are complex and manifold: sleep-related disorders like insomnia, family-issues (e.g., feeding schedules of babies and young children), commuting, excessive recreation on “work-nights,” and the compounding nature of being both overworked and overstressed at the office.

Take for example, the following scenario: If an employee works for 7 hours and naps for one during the middle of the day, then that employee may very well get more accomplished — and the quality of work may improve — versus someone who works for a full 8 hours per day but is over-tired. Also consider the physiological reality that many employees feel fatigued in the afternoon hours after lunch — and this could serve as a perfect time for companies to offer their employees a much-needed siesta.

Many progressive and forward-thinking companies have already begun to encourage on-the-job napping. It could very well be that these companies stand to gain a tangible competitive advantage in the future as their employees become more productive on a day-to-day basis. Also consider that in a day and age where employees (specifically younger ones) care about corporate culture more than ever, companies who have on-the-job napping policies and/or novel office space that accommodates relaxation stand to attract more and better talent in the long-term.

Most importantly, will friends and family members become jealous of one another over policies like this? I don’t know too many people that would argue with a workplace napping policy — or who would not resent those around them who benefited from such policies! Picture the benefits package of the future: 401(k) matching, gym memberships, generous group health and dental plans, on-site childcare facilities…and of course, a state-of-the-art napping facility! It’s already starting to happen…

Mounting evidence now suggests that girls are entering into puberty at even earlier ages that previously thought. Specifically, newly emerging research indicates that increasing percentages of girls in the U.S. are exhibiting premature development — most notably, the growth of breasts — as early as 7 or 8 years of age. Considering that these girls are still in the early years of grade school, this is a profound trend. Additionally, some female infants in china are beginning to exhibit the same symptoms of premature development. In China, there is some speculation as to whether tainted milk and baby formula is a possible cause of these infant cases. Research has yet to determine with any certainty whether that or other causes are to blame. More broadly, researchers posit that a combination of exposure to certain chemicals and inappropriate diet/nutrition could be underlying these trends. The reality that girls may be entering puberty at earlier ages not only leads to an important discussion of the causes, but also the long-term repercussions:

1) Health: The earlier that girls experience puberty, the greater their risk for various diseases, ailments and reproductive issues later in life. For example, we may eventually see increased incidence of certain types of cancer among women as a result of this.

2) Reproduction: The implications here are two-fold. First, as girls are able to have children at earlier ages, there will undoubtedly be an uptick in risky behavior — specifically, unwanted teenage and pre-teen pregnancies. Secondly, women who experience earlier puberty will have diminished reproductive capacities at earlier ages than ever before. This may cause many women to reconsider putting off children until later life, in favor of career and income development — as has been the macro trend across much of the developed world.

3) Education: As more girls enter puberty earlier, the developmental divide between girls and boys (who already tend to develop later) could increase. As a result, educators around the world dealing with this issue will have to adopt strategies for educating many children of the same “age” in the same classes who will be at staggered, advanced or inappropriate developmental levels.

4)  Family & Parenting: Will parents be cognitively flexible to the reality that their child may be entering puberty at what would historically be considered an “incorrect” or “inappropriate” time? How will parents adjust their strategies in raising these children, and will intra-familial conflict — so often the trademark of parent/teenager interactions — become a growing concern among girls as young as 7 or 8 and their parents?

5) Gender Dynamics: What will the long-term implications be for this as it relates to gender interaction? Will girls who enter puberty be ostracized and/or have a “leg up” on their female peers? Alternatively, will some sort of divide broaden between the performance and maturity of girls and boys? (note that several issues are already leading to many boys falling behind socially and in educational systems around the world)

Inevitably, if this trend increases, it will undoubtedly lead to an explosion of new product and service opportunities as global marketers look to capitalize on a never-before seen demographic niche — and their parents. Not only will education and advocacy programs be important, but entirely new health, beauty, pharma and reproductive product markets will emerge.

At this quarter’s STEP meeting, we presented a working paper on how networks are becoming more intricate and pervasive, and systems more interconnected and embedded.  This includes the interconnection between RFID and smartphone technology. I recently came across an example of how this integration is being applied in new and innovative ways.  DOK, a cutting-edge library center in Delft, the Netherlands, has been finding new ways to use RFID, smart and wireless technology as a way to inspire and connect its patrons through a variety of concepts:

DOK Agora: DOK Agora is a multimedia center featuring several “tell-­stories” stations, a video recording station, and a video wall. By scanning library passes on a screen with a built-in RFID reader, visitors can upload a chosen story, take it to the “tell-stories” tables, and attach their own content-photos, text, audio, and video. A built-in camera takes a visitor’s photo and adds it to his or her story. The stories are then visible on the DOK Agora screens for all to see. The exhibitions are based on themes that are relevant to a large number of people in the Netherlands, i.e. the drastic renovation of the downtown railroad zone.

Delft Heritage Browser: Users can dig into the Delft city archive using membership cards, which contain their age and locations. The system shows visitors images relevant to their lives, displayed as a “pile” on the screen. By touching the screen, visitors can browse images dating from when they were born, or depicting the street where they live. DOK is also working with multiple libraries and museums to create applications to access their collections.

Tank U: Tank U is a stand-alone, public download unit, at which people stop to “tank up” their mobile device via a Bluetooth or wireless connection.  It is being deployed in locations beyond the library proper, such as railway stations or supermarkets, where people can receive sophisticated and surprising content. The fuel in Tank U includes text, audio, and video from a number of sources.

Technology can now fuse many different types of systems into a unified platform, and examples such as this are just the beginning. The marriage of technologies could deliver many benefits to companies as it begins to be implemented in practical ways that provide clear benefits to businesses and consumers.

Today, Erica Orange’s blog post appeared on DeVry University President Blog on the “Future of Careers in the Emerging Economy.”

Click here to check it out.

In a recent Working Paper, Jared Weiner highlighted the evolution of  several personal, professional and sociopolitical venting outlets.  From all of our research, we have seen several factors leading to what we call “the reinvention of venting.”  The reinvention of venting is profoundly changing social, political and cultural expression.  What it means to express oneself or share opinions in an open forum is shifting dramatically – thanks in part to the enormous growth of social media.

This trend is putting a spotlight on the realization that consumers (or people in any context) will be resourceful in finding ways to channel built-up energies into any readily available outlets.   Look, for instance, at the newly-popular YouTube video entitled “Target Ain’t People” by the group MoveOn.  Angry at Target’s donation of over $150K to a conservative candidate for Governor of Minnesota, a flash mob descended on the big box retailer and … sang!

In the end, the real story is that organizations and individuals have no place left to hide. They are made visible in the new wave of documentaries, like Michael Moore’s “Roger and Me” and “Sicko,” to Robert Kenner’s “Food, Inc.,” or in demonstrations like the rise of the Tea Party, or in the countless websites that comment, expose and attack. Venting is being totally reinvented, and that will change everything from human resource management, politics, law, international relations, board governance, marketing and business practices to individual and organizational reputation.

Locally and globally, we continue to see that the nature of jobs is profoundly changing, and what we do in order to earn our incomes, and how we do it, will never be the same.  Importantly, none of this will ever again conform to what were the norms or rules or expectations across companies or through the years.

Today, I (Erica) had the pleasure of participating in DeVry University’s first In-Demand Careers Conference. This timely event examined where information security, healthcare management and accounting is moving in the future.  I spoke to the audience about the galloping pace of change, and how a slew of new technologies are ushering people out of their jobs, and changing the way we work and live. While many people view the current economic climate as a recession, we view this as a period of transformation.  We are moving from the world as we have always known it to a radically new one – and with it comes an urgent need for new ways of doing business, structuring organizations, and living our lives.

At the event, I spoke about how careers will never be the same as they used to be, and will look very different in the years to come. The idea that there are definitive beginning, middle and end stages to an individual’s life is also shifting.  People are now more likely to quit work and go back to school or retire and then take up a new career than ever before; life is less and less likely to follow a linear path.  There are also no career paths any more in one place or one industry, and there is no longer any guarantee that the job will even be there as long as a year later.

It will become increasingly important for universities, such as DeVry, to teach a new generation about data security and risk, and help students identify and address the real-world challenges of IT security in new and innovative ways.

The four of us (Edie, Arnold, Erica & Jared) have had the pleasure of working with Vibhuti Jha in numerous capacities over the years.  He always adds considerable insights at our quarterly STEP meetings, and possesses intimate and in-depth knowledge of Indian culture, economics and politics.  He is the President for the Human Potential Project, and a faculty member in McDaniel College, Baltimore, in their graduate program “Leadership in Global Enterprise”.

He contributes a regular column to the Times of India.  The text of his latest column (Leadership – Technology, Corruption and Redemption!) is listed below.  We love getting his perspective, so we hope you enjoy it!

Events of the last few weeks and days may not have caused any change in the lives of political leaders all over the world but the pivotal role of technology may perhaps be causing them some concern. In genuine and authentic democracies around the world, where we have freedom of the press, these events have become visible to the public, to the voters and the discussions continue almost round the clock! I am talking about the CWG scandal in India,  Wikileaks exposure of  the US and Pakistan’s double or triple play, Chinese human rights violations in Tibet, to name a few.

In each of these incidents people are witnessing  a crass manipulation of instruments of politics, religion,  diplomacy, economics and war by people in power who incidentally have given every justification for whatever they are doing  ‘in the name of the people.” In each of these events and incidents, technology has played a key role in exposing behind the scene manipulations and it enabled a continuous chase of those events in keeping the fire lit whenever and wherever possible. Even in cases where the issue seemed dead and buried, technology has created the potential and the possibility alive to bring the story to the forefront literally with a click of a mouse.  The dilemma for leaders now is that they cannot hide anymore, not for too long and certainly not forever!

The common man bestows unswerving loyalty and faith to those who are in position of power. They virtually end up worshipping those in power in an unfailing faith and hope that the powerful will lift the common miseries of the powerless. But that perhaps remains a pipe dream. What the leaders need to recognise, and they better do it fast, is that the time for camouflage, deception, forked tongue manipulation of the voters is gradually coming to an end, sooner than later.

And finally, our business leaders must recognise and realise that  technology tracks their every move,  every statement and action and there are just too many eyes watching and observing them whether via the webcam, satellites over or under and the trail left behind on the hardware via the software they use!  Nobody can get away with the lies and deceptions anymore.

The redemption for all leaders will come by committing to a better, authentic and impeccable transparency in conduct and behaviour for a majority regardless of the imperfections, difficulties and challenges of governance in a democratic set up. It is impossible to make everyone happy.  And, of course, there would still be many more who will continue to strive with their innovations in how to beat this imperfect system!  We are humans after all with unlimited potential – we need to channel our human potential in the right direction.

As technology has advanced, so has the experience of shopping.  New distribution channels have provided new opportunities for consumers.  People no longer shop only in stores, out of catalogs and from websites.  Thanks to virtual reality, people can now shop in an entirely new dimension, and it is helping enhance the experience by making it more personal and realistic.  At the same time, avatars are also beginning to populate the virtual landscape and are becoming powerful economic consumers.

If most people today were to walk into a typical clothing store, what would they find?  They would find the fitting rooms to be little closets in the back, with no technology in the service of the customer.  This is largely because the store designers themselves are stuck in the world they knew before new distribution channels became popular.  But things are beginning to change.

A couple years ago, we saw Accenture come out with the Online Wardrobe, a smart closet which uses sensors, tagging and tracking technologies to keep track of the clothing you already own, and helps you buy coordinating items, either online or in physical stores. This way a new way of connecting the real/physical and virtual worlds.

I recently came across a fantastic video that Adam Gordon posted on his  blog The Future Cafe that changes the way we look at the concept of the retail fitting room:

An extraordinary revolution is taking place on the front end of retailing.  Now, time and digital technology are combining to alter the entire pre-purchase and purchase process.  The payment process is also being revolutionized.  People can “bump” their mobiles and transfer money, and swipe their mobiles and purchase products.  Social media and networks pass along recommendations and tweet product experience and preferences.  Advertising avenues and messaging are multiplying rapidly, and and the disintermediation of traditional channels is rampant.

However, as technology rapidly advances, it will be increasingly important to pay particular attention to the experience of the purchase (and not just the technology), since it is the experience, after all, that seems to generate the long-term satisfaction.

The September/October issue of The Futurist magazine includes Erica Orange’s article “From Eco-Friendly to Eco-Intelligent.”  As posted on the World Future Society website, here is a brief summary of the piece:

Around the world, growing numbers of consumers are purchasing supposedly eco-friendly products such as organic clothing, energy-saving light bulbs, and reusable shopping bags. But how much is actually known about these products, and are they as environmentally beneficial as they claim? Consumers are repeatedly told it’s okay to consume everything that’s eco-friendly, but the cumulative effect of that consumption on the environment is immense.

The article also talks about the importance of reexamining our current waste streams, and thinking not in terms of cradle-to-grave, but cradle-to-cradle.  This shift in thinking will be revolutionary.  In the future, being green will mean taking into consideration the entire life cycle of a product when designing it. By successfully integrating eco-design principles into products and services, companies will be able to gain a key competitive advantage.  As the pace of change increases, organizations will more frequently feel the pressure of societal tides like “social responsibility” and “environmentally friendly.” Transparency and authenticity is crucial.

If anyone would like a copy of the PDF, please email us (info@weineredrichbrown.com).

Storytelling is as old as human history.  Traditionally, we have thought of all stories as having a beginning, a middle and an end.  But it appears that the non-linear approach is becoming more common in the world today.  The popular filmmaker, Christopher Nolan, exemplifies this approach in his movies.  Back in 2000, his film Memento told the story of a man whose memory does not exist.  The film’s events unfold in two separate, alternating narratives – one in color, and the other in black and white. The black and white sections are told in chronological order, and the color sequences are told in reverse chronological order.  In Nolan’s most recent film, Inception, non-linear storytelling forces the audience on a journey through a world where technology exists to enter the human mind through many levels of dream invasion.

But this trend is not only true in storytelling and movies.  The idea that there are definitive beginning, middle and end stages to an individual’s life is also shifting.  People are now more likely to quit work and go back to school or retire and then take up a new career than ever before.  As we have seen over and over again, life is less and less likely to follow a linear path.  This will only become more common as the average life span grows longer. The move away from a linear life path for younger people is partially reflective of their expectations that you can invent your own story, choose your own endings, and not wait until the end for rewards.

It is possible that in the networked world in which we now live, and in which connections are now made in a web-like pattern as opposed to a straight line, we will continue to move away from linear narratives in many aspects of our lives.  As children and youth, with their more malleable brains, develop in an increasingly networked world, it does not seem unreasonable to assume that they will be comfortable creating and functioning in a culture where non-linear narratives are the norm.  If young brains start out processing information in a non-linear fashion, then it may be possible that growing up in a networked world will encourage the brain to stay with that sort of processing.

An increasingly non-linear path in the life cycle will add to the difficulty of raising a family, which is already increasing as a result of the incredibly dynamic culture in which we live.  Individuals, lacking a norm or standard to compare themselves to at various times in their lives, will question if they are doing the right thing at the right time.  In the workplace, boredom is likely to increase for those who can’t stick with a linear narrative.  The gamer generation will require the re-framing of tasks so as to inspire them and allay their boredom and disinterest.  This will present a challenge to managers unable to adapt to the non-linear approach.  Schools, too, must make changes – the old methods of teaching do not reach, or prepare, students living in an increasingly web-structured world.

And just as all of us may be increasingly confused in the world in which we now live, confusion reigns in the lives of the young.  But what is also confusing is the way in which we define “youth” in the coming economy. Up through the last half of the 20th century, adolescence was viewed as an important life stage that marked the transition years between childhood and adulthood.  The modern life cycle came to contain multiple phases of youth:  infancy, toddler, childhood, adolescence, late teens and early adulthood.  What is emerging in the early years of the 21st century is a blending of these phases, and an extension of youth into what we might have considered full adulthood.

As the lines become increasingly blurred, absolute demarcations between populations and generations will no longer exist.  Demographic variables will be increasingly hard to quantify – lines become more nebulous.  Tangible definitions of household, income level, age, gender, race and ethnicity, employment status, religious affiliation, location, educational attainment, mobility, marital status, will all be inadequate for the nonlinear world into which we are moving.