The CRE workforce is increasingly accepting this concept: work is an action, not a place. “Work” is now often joined with terms like “on-the-go” and “in the field.” The rise of mobile and
other technologies is changing the image of professional space.

Time spent face to face is as important as ever, but the physical office is facing an increasingly productive and prominent virtual office. In The Mobile Workforce, Coy Davidson states that this professional mobility is “allowing companies to shrink their office footprint.” This is not to say that the physical office is being phased out (certainly not the corporate office campus Coy Davidson writes). According to Gist, 40% of workers say they still need to be in the office to be productive.

Companies are integrating mobile technology into the workplace. Gist’s infographic cites that 32% of employees around the world rely on more than one mobile device during the typical workday. Mobile workers are using smartphones predominantly for social media for work, information management, web conferencing, note-taking, and office suites.

Virtual work, telecommuting and teleconferencing, and virtual teaming technologies are becoming a reality for companies in CRE. They’re going mobile.