There have been several revolutionary trends and technologies over the years that have changed the way humans work. Until recent years, the introduction and large-scale adoption of digital technologies and computers have been among such biggest trends. Currently, as digital tech has become commonplace in almost every domain, we are entering a brand revolutionary phase that is largely driven by artificial intelligence. The rapid rate at which artificial intelligence or AI is growing and is being used for diverse applications is almost mind-boggling.
With each passing day, more and more startups are using AI to boost efficiency and reduce time consumption across their firms. This technology enables companies to analyze unstructured data, generate insights, enjoy virtual assistance, and much more. According to recent forecasts, AI is expected to considerably impact and transform the way we work over the next five to twenty years
Here are the three core ways AI is likely to change the way we work.
Growth in Automation
The biggest and obvious way how AI is changing the way we work is the increasing use of automation in diverse spheres around us. Diverse types of tasks and workflows are being automated now, both in terms of complexity and volume. This increased dependence on AI still has several people falling victim to the narrative that robots are gradually rendering human workers obsolete. PricewaterhouseCoopers had analyzed more than 200,000 jobs in twenty-nine nations and found out that by the mid-2030s, about 30% of the jobs would be at the risk of getting automated, especially when it comes to workers having low education. While these figures are stark, it is also vital to note that even though certain roles shall be replaced as AI capabilities become more intuitive, such technological advancements will also pave the way for new jobs.
Evolving Roles
Apart from creating new job roles, automation and AI is likely to improve the quality of work for people as well. If you observe rationally, you are likely to notice that the jobs that are most likely to be done by robots in the future are ideally not the most sought-after roles. They are largely repetitive and mundane tasks. People can explore more creative and innovative job prospects instead of getting stuck in such dull tasks they don’t find any interest in. In the future, human roles are expected to be more focused on people-centric capabilities and soft skills that cannot be replicated by AI, such as creativity, problem-solving, empathy, and communication.
Employee Experience
The workplace of the future is expected to feature an amalgamation of both robots and humans working in tandem to achieve the same goals and objectives. This trend is expected to be seen in companies across all spheres, and not just the technology-based ones. Several technology-focused companies have even started to make this transition. No matter whether they are working in an office environment, a manufacturing plant, or a warehouse, workers belonging to almost any field and job role would have to get used to having AI devices and tools as their ‘co-workers’. Smart machines and AI shall play an increasingly important role in the working life of an average person and may influence how people are recruited at a firm and learn their job to their daily working activities. The workforces of tomorrow additionally are expected to become more decentralized, which is a trend that has significantly surged up over the last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This implies that future workers shall be able to virtually work from almost anywhere, thereby removing global barriers for companies and enabling them to leverage the skills of talented workers around the world.
Conclusion
Facilitating automation on a wider scale, AI is expected to transform the way people work to a considerable extent. The implementation of AI across the business landscape is inevitable. Very soon, the majority of the industries will be adopting automation and smart machines in their processes.
However, rather than being anxious about the future possibilities coming with it, you should try to embrace the brand-new opportunities offered by AI to improve the overall quality of work in diverse organizations. This would invariably require a cultural shift for companies, and hence they must start making preparations and strategies to adapt to the intelligence revolution. There will also be lots of new careers in artificial intelligence that will need humans, and hence young professionals should try to learn the skills and knowledge involved in them.
The business leaders trying to navigate the AI workforce transition in the contemporary environment should focus on unlocking their productivity potential while making sure of the effective delivery of business objectives by keeping three strategies in mind, which include investing in workforce re-skilling, rebalancing resources, as well as embracing new models of education and lifelong learning on a wider scale.
