THE EIGHT-HOUR WORKDAY IS DEAD

Founder, Genpact and Chairman, Clix Capital

There is no debate that technology has profoundly changed what we do, what we need to do to survive, and the very nature of the work we will do. Surprisingly, the nature of the way we work has not changed as much as it could and as much as it should.

Is the eight-hour working day outdated? It certainly is. And it should be. The reason it began was because of the command and control structures with which we worked. It was driven by the need for supervision, time checks, payment by the hour, and the need for work to be done at specific locations with specific purposes. It was factories, assembly lines, offices, and centres of operations. There are millions of people still employed in major companies, banks and government offices, where the perceived need is for people to show up and be seen.

And yet, we are