HP Innovation Journal Issue 13: Winter 2019 | Page 57

40%
By 2020, Gen Z will account for
40% of all consumers
Employees who consider their employers to be pioneers
in providing mobile technology scored themselves 16%
higher for productivity, 23% higher for satisfaction, and
21% higher for loyalty than employees without good mobile
technology support, according to a study from the Econ-
omist Intelligence Unit and Aruba, a Hewlett-Packard
Enterprise company. As more employers and employ-
ees realize the benefits of mobile work, technological
advances will continue to improve their experience.
WHAT A WORKER NEEDS TODAY
So what does the modern mobile employee need? A laptop,
a smartphone, a speedy internet connection, cloud-based
collaboration, security—and technology that fits their per-
sonal style, whether they’re working in a hotel lobby on an
international trip or their neighborhood coffee shop.
The mobile workstyle means communicating via video
calls, collaborating using apps such as Slack and Zoom,
and coordinating with far-flung team members through
project management platforms like Basecamp.
Employees who work away from the office are often
working in public or in front of clients, and they want their
technology to fit their personal aesthetic. They may want
to use their own personal devices for work or request more
consumer-style devices from their IT departments.
Caleb Fleming, premium new product introduction lead at
HP, says the shift to a mobile workstyle informed the HP
Elite Dragonfly’s design inside and out. “It’s light and sleek,
and also durable and secure,” he says. “Essentially, it’s a
device that meets corporate standards but doesn’t look
like a corporate device.”
Starting at under 2.2 pounds, the HP Elite Dragonfly
lightens the load for employees working on the move. Its
up to 24.5 hours of battery life gives them the reliability
they need as they move from location to location, and its
1,000 nit screen makes it possible to work in extremely
bright light. The HP Elite Dragonfly’s clean, modern
design is available in a unique, iridescent blue that also
hits a sustainability milestone as the world’s first notebook
containing ocean-bound plastic.
THEY DON’T JUST LIKE AND FOLLOW—
THEY LEAD
Among Gen Z small-business owners, 57% say a goal of
their entrepreneurial efforts is to make a significant
mark on the world. “This generation is very interested
in addressing the root causes of issues rather than the
symptoms of the problems,” says Corey Seemiller,
co-author of Generation Z Leads. According to data
from sparks & honey, 54% of Gen Z-ers say they want
to make an impact on the world.
For example, in her role as an associate professor in lead-
ership studies at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio,
Seemiller saw Millennial students enter college wanting
to volunteer by, say, putting in a few hours serving food at
a local shelter. When Gen Z students matriculated, they
approached the same cause in a new way.
73%
By 2028, 73% of companies
will have remote workers
“They were asking different questions,” Seemiller says.
“They said, ‘I want to create a business that might solve this
problem. I want to create an invention or research solutions.
I want to give back in a way that’s going to change these
issues so that we’re not constantly playing catch-up.’”
They are doing it. From activists Malala Yousafzai and
students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in
Parkland, Florida, to entrepreneurs like Alina Morse, the
13-year-old CEO of Zollipops, a $6 million candy company
that makes lollipops that are good for your teeth, the kids
are doing more than all right. Using technology, Generation
Z is creating solutions to the problems they see plaguing the
world, and they’re just getting started, says PSB’s Mackenzie.
“Technology has always proven to be a fuel,” he says. “They
use it in a way that makes sense for who they are.”
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