The Future of Work - Part 1

File 20:  In today’s file, the team will discuss the future of work, namely the changes to where and how we’ll work, in the not too distant future.  In an effort to lighten up the topic, we let AI draft the outline for this file.  Jason and Molley haven’t seen the outline.  We’ll see where the machine takes us!

Companies Will Adapt to Remote Work to Survive?

There’s been a lot of chatter about the return-to-office trend.  How will this affect the workforce?  Molley suggests that top talent may decide to seek other companies allowing its teams at least some work-from-home flexibility.  Jason’s company, CrowdSouth, has decided to let everyone work from home, although they have periodic, internal, in-person meetings.  Client meetings are also generally held in-person.  Some employees do enjoy coming into the office and interacting with colleagues.  While he understands the advantages of being able to stay home, there are many jobs that can’t be done that way.

One of the compromises (or sacrifices) we’ve made is giving up that traditional 9-5 work day.  Working from home often results in work being done throughout the day and night.   

As an HR professional, Jamie admits not walking through the office environments makes it more difficult for her to get a sense of the way employees are interacting.  It makes it more of a challenge to understand how the culture is actually working.  Remote work also makes it more difficult to form those bonds with colleagues.  Companies are required to be more intentional about how they maintain productivity and cultivate a positive experience.

Molley notes that if we were to return to the office, it may help to reestablish boundaries for everyone.  This may help to better define when someone is “on” and when they’re “off.”  That line has gotten blurred over the past several years.  Jason explains how the work being done is more difficult for managers to accurately track.  Members of his team may decide to work more at night or to take longer lunch breaks. 

While it may be okay for some organizations, it may present more of a challenge for others.  For instance, because the employees don’t have that face-to-face interaction, there may be less of a social bonding taking place.  His company uses a practice during weekly meetings to enable each team member to talk about personal bests they accomplished, in additional to their work-related accomplishments.  This is an actual agenda item for their meetings.

Molley suggests there should be a hybrid approach to having employees re-enter the office.  Maybe this is a 3-2 arrangement or some other workable combination. 

Jamie explains a concept referred to as the “Trust Triangle.”  It’s made up of 3 attributes:  being authentic, being empathetic and having rigorous logic.  When combined, an organization can use it to build trust.  This can be helpful as companies begin to require employees to return to the office.  The trust triangle can be a guiding principle in helping organizations to successfully navigate this change.

Jason points out that some companies, including his, hired remotely.  This may present a significant barrier to requiring everyone to return to a central office. 

Prediction:  Jamie predicts that hybrid work arrangements will be the solutions.  Organizations will need to balance flexibility with customer needs.  Molley sees a significant push in 2025 to have employees return to the office on a more regular basis.  She sees the hybrid becoming the solution for 2026 and beyond, in an effort to keep top talent.  Jason agrees with both, but adds that it’s going to be more based on the industry or roles involved.

AI and Automation Will Grow in Significance

Jamie discusses how she’s begun using Smartsheet.  It creates charts, graphs and summaries from Excel spreadsheets (take that you pivot table aficionados).  She also uses AI to draft policies, based on previous policies she may have written.  It’s an expedited path, verses always starting from scratch.  Recently, she used AI to help outline a process map for organization design.  Again, it’s a way to get started more quickly.

Molley uses ChatGPT to rewrite a document she’s already drafted.  She like how it can make a draft much more understandable.  On a different level, she sees how AI will have a dramatic effect on recruiting.  While it may not fully replace the human, it will augment the process and reduce the time required to perform certain tasks from talent attraction to assimilation.

Jamie notes that if you decide to use AI in recruiting, you will still be responsible for your screening.  It cannot have an unintended or disparate impact.  You need to be careful here.  A recent case made it to the Supreme Court. 

Jason comments that there are a number of sensitive topics and asks he doesn’t see being transitioned to AI. He sees the value in having it write a first draft for an important press release.  Spell checking is another AI-delegated task.  He points out that the liability will require the final version to remain in human hands. 

In the marketing and advertising space, Jason uses various AI tools.  For instance, one assists with A/B testing suggestions.  AI can easily create additional versions of an add, enabling them to test which would be the best option.  It’s definitely a time-saving tool.  Rather than replacing the human touch, it makes his team more efficient.  They can spend more time on the main creative, rather than on the various iterations. 

Jamie enjoyed an AI tool on the recruiting-side.  It reviewed and evaluated job descriptions to determine if they leaned feminine or masculine.  Certain words or phrasing might attract a certain gender to a specific opportunity. 

Jason points out that the AI was created by humans and the algorithms often pull from certain sources.  Both of these factors could introduce a degree of bias. 

Molley also use AI to help the job description to target specific types of applicants.  For instance, an industrial construction job description needs to be different from one for a residential contractor.  The two industries use different words.  Understanding this will help recruiting software to forward specific opportunities to the proper target candidate pool.  This maximizes the impact of the market funds allocated to recruitment activities.

The group discusses the need to review how AI enhanced the copy or draft.  You’ll still want to verify that it fully understood the task it was given and that it executed properly.  This is extremely important from a compliance perspective. 

Prediction:  Jamie predict that the use of AI and automation will continue to grow, but we’ll need to be careful with the inputs and spend time evaluating the outputs.  This may lead to the development of new skills.  Molley feels AI and automation will require us to discuss the future of careers.  The cross-functionality we have will play a part, but the role requirements are definitely going to need to adapt.  Jason notes that it won’t be about replacing roles, but rather a question of which responsibilities can be enhance using AI and automation.  He also encourages leaders to explore the capabilities of these AI tools.  Molley suggests there may be ways for organizations to reallocate funds to ensure employees receive a financial benefit, based on the savings that might be related to a position eliminated through AI.d 

It’s interesting to think about where AI and automation will take us in the next 10 years.

Be sure to join us for Part 2 of the discussion!

That’s where we’ll leave the conversation for today.  Before we close the file, we invite you to reach out to us with questions, suggestions or other comments.  We’d love to hear from you.

 

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Need Help Supporting Your Company’s Recruiting and Staffing Goals?

We’re here to help.  You can contact us via our individual websites, depending on your specific needs or questions:

·      Jamie Swaim, SPHR – www.ParcelKnows.com

·      Molley Ricketts – www.IncipioWorks.com

·      Jason Heflin – www.CrowdSouth.com

We hope you found this file insightful and helpful.  Thank you for listening!