Technology trends are continually being monitored and assessed to spot the digital forces that are already upon us and those that are just over the horizon. Although some technologies will first impact us as a consumer, nearly all will eventually find their way into the workplace. A technology trend becomes a business imperative becomes a driving force reshaping the work of leaders and employees. For this issue of the Modern App, we’ve researched eight high-profile technology reports and distilled 95 individual trends to core themes—the digital megatrends—disrupting the modern workplace. Ultimately, we seek to apply an integrative structure to create a broader view of where I-O professionals must soon engage.

Imagine this scenario: You are faced with a conflicting work decision with an impending deadline. Normally you would gather more information about each choice and think through each strategy, but you don’t have a lot of time. You go to one of your trusted colleagues to ask for advice or recommendation on which choice you should take. The advice is reasonable, and you made an informed decision in a short period of time. You really appreciate your colleague and your colleague was flattered that you asked her.

Imagine that you are interviewing for a spot in an I-O graduate program. You have just finished answering questions about your academic background, your research interests, and the faculty members with whom you are interested in working. Now the interviewers ask you to fast forward and let them know what you plan to be doing with your degree, 10 years down the line. How do you even begin to answer that question?

Let’s do an exercise: think back to your graduate school days and to those who graduated with you; or, if you’re still enjoying the graduate life, think about the alumni that you have met from your program.  Now, did all of these individuals go into practice?  Did they all go into academia?  For most PhD programs, we would guess that the answer to both of these questions is “no”; rather, graduates likely pursued a mixture of both of these career paths.  Now think about the program itself. Was it focused more on the practical aspects of I-O consulting—on planning and executing projects, on interacting with various stakeholders, and so on?  Or was it more research focused, concentrating on I-O theory and a variety of advanced statistical technques?  Or was it a fairly even offering of the two, equipping students with either (or both!) skillsets?  Now here’s the kicker: Did you know, going in, what this focus was?  If so, to what extent did that influence your decision to attend that program?  If not, would you have changed your decision having had this information?

No one who works with tests and other employment practices wants their employer to be sued because of a discriminatory practice, so their acting to mitigate potential employer liability is part of their job, even if not explicitly stated in a job description. So, how a practice, such as test use, hiring or compensation, can be challenged as illegal, and the applicable standard under which a claim could happen, should be common knowledge.