Future of Work: YourStory Founder makes the case for disruptive innovation as 4th edition kicks off today

"One of the words that we use very regularly in the world of startups and tech is disruption. The world we were living in has been disrupted in the past few months, and it is going to be disrupted even more. Today, it's our own responsibility to make sure that disruption keeps on happening, be it in terms of technology, startups, or in our own lives."

With these words YourStory MediaFounder and CEO Shradha Sharma kicked off the fourth edition of the two-day Future of Work 2021 summit.

The all-virtual, two-day product-tech-design summit, to be held on March 5 and 6, will bring together the best of industry minds to understand the future of work and the impact of product, tech, and design on businesses of today and tomorrow.

Last year COVID-19 caused an upheaval of digital disruption in the Indian economy. In 2019, we were just talking about the change; in 2020, we found ourselves hurtling towards it with a 10X accelerated pace.

But confusions prevail and debates continue when it comes to the future of work, the workforce, and workplaces. Will things be fully remote? Will there be a hybrid model? Will businesses go back to full on-site operations? What's the most productive option among different workplace set-ups?

According to a study by Kentik, 47 percent professionals worldwide reported they felt more productive while working from home. Another report by Gartner shows 53 percent of company leaders do not intend to allow employees to work remotely full time going forward.

There are more studies that suggest that 84 percent of employers are ready to rapidly digitalise working processes with significant expansion of remote work, and that as much as 44 percent of the workforce could operate remotely.

The data around the future of work and suggestions on what's the best way forward for businesses are endless. But, there are questions aplenty on how businesses and those aspiring to be tech, product, and design wizards should prepare for the way forward.

Going forward in 2021, we are really excited to see how industry experts look at the new normal and how we can create build a robust foundation for a better, more connected, and inclusive future.

With the Aatmanirbhar Bharat movement gaining momentum across India, and the surge in Made In India products, apps, and innovations, we will be talking, discussing, brainstorming, and shining a spotlight on:       

• The futurescape for the next generation of businesses in the country
• Trends and tech that will reshape workplace environments
• Boosting Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace via tech and culture
• Balancing culture amid offline and remote working switch
• Future of collaboration
• Fueling digital transformation
• Emergence of gig economy
• Rise of AI and automation and so much more

Through a series of masterclasses from some of the finest entrepreneurs, policymakers, technologists, investors, mentors, and business leaders, we will help you get a peek into the future, obtain up-to-the-minute insights to power your decisions, and learn first hand about tech, product, and design playbooks.

As Shradha puts it: "Disrupt or run the risk of being disrupted. Do it before the world does to stay ahead of the curve."

A big shout out to our Future of Work 2021 Co-presenting Sponsors Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Unique Solutions; Digital Excellence Partner, Google Cloud; Associate Sponsor HP and Intel; and Sponsors: Atlassian, Freight Tiger, Archon I Cohesity, TeamViewer, and Pocket Aces.