After reading that IDC study, I came across a popular acronym – Moof. “Moof” is just the short form for mobile out of office. (According to: About) There are a few articles discussing the phenomenon already in progress. Here are a few:

Meet the moofers: the office is so last century

Welcome to the brave new world of the moofer – or mobile out-of-office worker. Look around: you’ll see them conducting deals, holding meetings or finding inspiration at a coffee shop, hotel lobby, airport lounge or park bench near you. This new generation of young, tech-savvy workers live their business lives in nomadic fashion, wherever they can find a wi-fi connection – and they don’t believe in the traditional nine to five.

Out on a Limb: Telecommuting From a Tree

Known colloquially as MOOF, Microsoft’s Mobile Out Of Office is literally going out on a limb to show companies that workers like the idea of telecommuting.

The company built a tree-house office in a park in London, and the software giant’s message is that corporate decisions don’t always need to be dictated within the confines of four walls and harsh fluorescent lighting.

In the United Kingdom, Microsoft research shows that nine out of 10 British workers desire an out-of-office setting — with 75% saying this flexibility is a huge factor in deciding whether to accept a new job opportunity.

MOOFing – how mobile working will affect small businesses

The business case for a more mobile work-force is pretty clear. UK workers put in some of the longest hours out of the G7 countries yet are some of the least productive. Our dogged adherence to a 9-to-5 culture is no longer paying dividends.

Then there are the needs of employees. A balance between work and social life is a key demand of the new generation of workers that have grown up in an age of increased social communication and interaction. Indeed, recent Microsoft sponsored research of 1000 British workers shows that 73% are looking for some form of flexible working in their next career move.

It’s worth stressing now that mobile or flexible working does NOT mean working from home, it means working from the best location for the task that needs to be completed. Of course, being in the office is often an absolute necessity and does have legitimate advantages some of the time, but there are times when being with a customer, in a seminar or indeed at home with some peace and quiet are what’s required.

How “Working” In The Office Isn’t The Best Option

With 78% of the people questioned believing that working out of the office is the future for the workplace there is clearly a desire to move to a new working culture. The survey also revealed that more than half of British office workers would be happier if there was a greater element of mobile working in their jobs, while 16% said that they would actually leave their jobs within six months if their boss wasn’t open to flexible working.

Is the office becoming irrelevant?

A poll by remote services firm Citrix Online has found more Americans are performing at least part of their job from virtually anywhere at any hour of the day, thanks to online and wireless technology.

It argued the “telecommuters” of the 1980s and 1990s should more appropriately today be called “web commuters” because of their growing reliance on the internet.

Its research comes as a poll of more than a 1,000 British workers by think-tank The Work Foundation and Microsoft has concluded that just a tenth of workers find their workplace a creative environment in which to work, with a third labelling it as uninspiring.

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