In the ultimate instalment of our “future of work” sequence, we take a look at the potential methods developments in expertise have modified and proceed to alter the best way we work.

Keeping us related

Technology has been utilized in workplaces for a few years and has been on the forefront of the transfer away from conventional employment fashions – the appearance of cell apps to assist the gig financial system being a first-rate instance. However, the velocity with which employers and staff tailored to new methods of working throughout the pandemic confirmed us that expertise can more and more be launched into the office, and that staff are open to and might rapidly adapt to new expertise when the necessity arises.

Indeed, for many people, COVID-19 modified the office into one the place expertise is at its core. Collaboration instruments and video conferencing services like MS Teams and Zoom turned a lifeline for a lot of organisations to create an efficient digital working setting and a method for social interplay at instances when groups couldn’t be collectively. Technology even offered a approach for courts to proceed sitting throughout lockdowns. 
This method to work is ready to remain for the foreseeable future, with many organisations persevering with to embrace hybrid and versatile working put up pandemic to stay aggressive and entice the expertise they want. Key to that is the power to speak on the similar time with a workforce unfold all through the nation and even internationally. 

Alongside that is the necessity to guarantee staff are working successfully wherever they’re primarily based. Data analytics, worker monitoring software program and cloud computing are more and more being adopted by companies and different organisations to enhance office productiveness. Such expertise is not only there to verify an worker’s output however may also be essential to workers welfare, for instance by checking that employees are taking acceptable relaxation breaks.

Recruitment

We are additionally seeing expertise getting used to streamline recruitment practices, with AI and automation being the primary port of name for shortlisting candidates. It will not be such an enormous leap to see automation taking on arranging interviews and even holding first-round interviews within the not-too-distant future.

Recruitment will be time-consuming when making an attempt to stability all components, from figuring out the necessities and the “nice to haves” for the function to the totally different wants of particular person candidates and the need to champion variety and inclusion practices. It is logical to show to expertise to help with this.

However, AI and automation are data-driven and arguably will solely be nearly as good as the info offered, and far has been written in regards to the potential discrimination threat in relying too closely on an automatic course of, as an example the place historic knowledge is used to make choices that may then replicate structural inequality or unconscious bias. This implies that enter from recruitment and HR groups will nonetheless be required.

Skills shortages

It is extensively reported that companies are dealing with expertise shortages and considerations over the supply of expertise. This is simply more likely to worsen as new industries and roles are created. Could expertise be the reply?

Certainly, the power to switch a repetitive, time-consuming and labour-intensive course of with a speedier, extra stream-lined course of pushed by expertise, will undoubtedly be welcome by many employers trying to enhance the standard of service or items, scale back their prices and enhance their income.

It may then come as no shock to study that many employers are desperate to put money into synthetic intelligence (AI), automation and robotics. Indeed, they’ve turn out to be extra widespread place in some sectors. Examples embrace using AI in customer support, robot-assisted surgical procedures and automatic choice assist techniques throughout retail, manufacturing and even air visitors management.

The development in expertise could inevitably result in the elimination of some routine jobs and duties. Although this might lead to a decreased want for some roles to be fulfilled by people with resultant redundancies, equally it may give alternative for employers to create higher high quality jobs and improve upskilling and profession prospects for his or her staff. Investing in and upskilling the workforce in order that they develop the abilities essential to thrive in a technology-enabled office will profit staff and future-proof organisations.

But is all of it excellent news?

The days the place staff feared being changed by machines could have gone, however many staff are nonetheless cautious in regards to the ever-changing office.

Security and use of knowledge collected by office applied sciences, alongside knowledge safety compliance points the place the non-public knowledge of staff is collected, is a priority for a lot of staff, as is the growing scope of office monitoring and the way it may compromise their privateness.

For employers wanting to herald extra expertise to reinforce or streamline operations, there’ll undoubtedly be profit in participating with the workforce in regards to the adjustments and what it might imply for them. Sharing info with and involving staff within the design and implementation levels, with actual alternative to offer enter, may encourage engagement and acceptance to alter.

Into the longer term

The common office has already seen important change and, with persevering with developments in expertise, the longer term appears nearly sure to deliver better use of AI, automation and different expertise into the office of the longer term. Exactly how a lot additional it will change the working panorama solely time will inform.