The Future of Work With a Digital Twist
Recently, Bernard Marr posed a complelling question in a LinkedIn poll: Will AI make remote work the norm?
Good LinkedIn polls do more than ask yes/no or A, B, C questions. Like this one, they spark thoughtful conversation. Leaders have always grappled with the evolution of how work gets done. As new technologies advance and business models change, the nature of work also changes. When my career started, compute power and storage was expensive and had to be used sparingly. There were no personal computers in the workplace. Cell phones were an expensive rarity.
The pandemic changed our perspective. We found ways to work that did not seem possible. Remote work became essential. Many types of work cannot be done remotely. One of my clients was a manufacturer. They had to change work procedures and add new safety protocols, but their teams had to come into work to build their product.
Education went remote. While remote education was possible, it was, by all measures, much less effective than in-person learning. This was especially true for K-12. Those students fell behind. Just because you can do a thing does not mean you should do the thing.
The challenge is to balance work. In many ways, life can be described using Venn diagrams. For the future of work, it looks like this.
The hard work is finding the balance that leads to optimization. How do we structure work to achieve results and engage team members to help them succeed and grow? The answer will be different for everyone.
I believe the smallest circle in the diagram should be Remote work. There are several reasons for this.
Zoom meetings are useful, but in-person meetings are better. For distributed teams, they are a necessity. Often, the most valuable conversations happen in the 15 minutes before and after a meeting and over lunch or coffee.
Being in the office enables you to build your professional network. Careers are fluid. Employment is fluid. Someday, you will need to leverage your network to find your next opportunity.
Professional friendships foster trust and build team cohesion. When people know you and know they can count on you, collaboration improves. These relationships help shape your career path. While you own your career, it is yours to manage. But others will decide whether to offer you an opportunity. If they don’t really know you, your chances are slim.
The leadership dynamic has shifted dramatically. Today, we must convince people to want to be in the office. Teams need to understand more than just the business value; they must understand the personal benefits that come with showing up.
Related Articles
How return-to-office hits workers’ wallets | Fast Company
About 1 in 5 U.S. workers now use AI in their job, up since last year | Pew Research
9 Future of Work Trends for 2025 | Gartner
From jobs to skills to outcomes: Rethinking how work gets done | Deloitte
Chips and Salsa: Snack-sized news and posts
In my last two newsletters, I wrote about how learning to surf can help leaders prepare for the future. Here is another article that examines broad and long-term shifts in the world’s geopolitical landscape. I do not fully agree with the idea that there have been times when one specific country was dominant. Their influence was outsized. However, the broad sweeps of history are real.
The world without hegemony | Aeon
Say less; ask questions.
The secret to great job interviews: say less | Fast Company
History tells us that innovation is rarely a straight line. Aspirin is the result of the pursuit of fabric dyes.
The Tortuous Saga of the First Wonder Drug: Aspirin | American Business History Center
Big projects can transform economies. Organizations must adapt. Here is a historical example.
People do not need a mentor. They need multiple people they can learn from. A chapter in my book focuses on mentorship.
Sorry, Yoda. Mentors are going out of style | Fast Company
I hate the switch. I would vote for later sunsets all year round.
How daylight saving time affects your body, mind — and the world | TED
Some articles about AI
Debt Has Entered the A.I. Boom | The New York Times
AI chatbots are becoming everyday tools for mundane tasks, use data shows | The Conversation
AI isn’t replacing jobs. AI spending is | Fast Company
What is AI poisoning? A computer scientist explains | The Conversation
New Research Warns That AI Is Causing a ‘Reverse Dunning-Kruger Effect’ | Inc.
Quotes
“Skills are dynamic. What makes you successful today won’t make you successful three years, five years, or ten years from now.”
- Nick van der Meulen
“There are always new things to find out if you go looking for them.”
- David Attenborough
"It doesn't make sense to continue wanting something if you're not willing to do what it takes to get it.”
- James Clear
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I write about leadership in business and life. I am a certified M&A Specialist and Leadership coach. My perspectives are based on my 40+ year career working with leaders from around the world at over 100 companies.
My goal is to make this newsletter as interesting and valuable as possible. Please share your thoughts and suggestions for improvement. If there are specific topics in leadership you would like me to focus on in future issues, please send them my way.
You can order The Leader With A Thousand Faces on my website's Recommended Reading Page. This page also has links to purchase the books discussed in this and previous newsletters.
