Work 3.0 – The Office Has Left the Building

I came across what I think to be a game changing move by AOL earlier this week. They have given their developers the authority to use freelancers using an innovative service called odesk. So AOL developers can take on up to 3 additional staff to make them more productive. As announced in their recent investor briefing this move will “Empower our engineers to be smarter, faster, more efficient”.

To me this demonstrates an inspired leadership decision. It gives their developers authority and autonomy and opens up access to a global resource pool. This in turn will enable AOL to identify their future leaders as those who embrace the initiative will increase their own efficiency and build a great career for themselves.

The move will lead to increased productivity as developers can use odesk contractors to bring in people with specific specialist skills and build a stronger better team. In addition they can take advantage of time zone differences, to streamline their work flows, for example using overnight testing with team members based in different time zones to achieve a true 24/7 operation.

This move demonstrates that AOL understands the advantages of working globally and accessing talent pools, wherever they may be based. As it says on the odesk site it’s Work 3.0, and it’s already here.