Conducted by Forrester Consulting
As a leader in progressive education for working professionals, Brandman University, a member of Chapman University System, commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a survey of America’s Fortune 500 employers to take a pulse on attitudes about today’s virtual business environment and the skills employees need to compete effectively in a distributed work environment.
The survey found that while businesses increasingly play on a global stage and a work force spread across geographies is the norm, many employers still hold conflicted opinions on the merits of a virtual work environment. Respondents cited earning and building trust among employees as the key barrier to embracing the merits of virtual teams.
As a result, today’s workers must understand the skill sets employers require to compete effectively and overcome the trust issue, embracing both traditional leadership skills along with a proficiency in the technology and collaboration tools that build trust and drive results.
To prepare students for these challenges, Brandman developed an innovative curriculum model to focus on the realities of today’s virtual business world. The university designed the Brandman iDEAL (Instructional Design for Engaged Adult Learning) to prepare students for success in today’s networked, technology-driven virtual business environment.
For more information on survey findings and tips for preparing to compete effectively in today’s virtual working world, please see:
“Virtual Work Environments in the Post-Recession Era” white paper
Tips for job candidates, employees and managers
The Brandman iDEAL
Survey Methodology
Findings were gleaned through online surveys conducted between December 17 and December 30, 2010 with 135 senior leaders and hiring managers in America’s large and Fortune 500 companies (those with at least 5,000 employees) who are actively or gradually hiring new employees, as well as through a series of telephone interviews conducted in January 2011.