The sources of instability mentioned above can be addressed by establishing new anchors in each of the three categories, that is, work, organization, and worker.
Anchoring the work
As organizations integrate new technologies, they should consider the combination of humans and technological tools that can most effectively drive both business and human outcomes. Progress will be measured less by specific actions completed than by value delivered. The following examples illustrate some of the actions organizations can take to anchor work in a world of rapid technological advancement.
- Use technology to create value for both the organization and the worker.
As the capabilities of AI and advanced technology continue to progress, organizations must be intentional about how they’re applying technology in ways that create new value for both the organization and the worker.
Agnello says she recognizes that technology transformations meant to increase organizational agility can sometimes have the opposite effect. “When our workforce is not empowered and fails to see how technology can help them be better at their work and their work be better for them, we don’t see the desired business outcomes.” Agnello and her team are working to align what people expect and want from the technology and what the technology can provide.
Shell is using AI to reengineer monitoring and inspection processes at energy and chemical plants, pipelines, offshore facilities, and wind and solar farms. This work, which used to be performed in person by inspectors and maintenance technicians, can now be done remotely by robots and drones. As a result of these changes, inspectors and maintenance technicians can focus on other priority activities or, if they’re onsite, performing more advanced verification. At the same time, new tasks are emerging for multidisciplinary teams, such as annotation for images to improve inspection algorithms.11
- Empower employees on the journey to rearchitect work with AI.
AI tools can also be used to assist workers more directly. Mercedes-Benz, for example, has democratized production and management-related data to its car plants worldwide through a gen AI–powered data platform. The platform generates data-rich insights for employees, who can then ask questions using plain language instead of technical prompts. The platform enables employees to quickly access data to support decision-making and has been instrumental in helping to identify process improvement opportunities and bottlenecks across the assembly line, supply chain, and more.12
- Leverage AI to drive collaboration across silos and teams.
Organizations can also consider the ways in which AI can help bridge the gap between different departments and teams. Klick Health developed an AI copilot to bring together siloed teams in pharmaceutical companies to improve omnichannel marketing efforts. AI-driven representatives of different departments can now complete a first pass review of briefs, scopes, and other project documents, creating a starting point for discussion and refinement. Then, during the creative process, workers can integrate real-time AI-based feedback, streamlining workflow. The tool automates the process of linking different perspectives, freeing up experts to prioritize the parts of the project that fall under their purview.
Anchoring the organization
As organizations become more dynamic and flexible, they should consider moving away from hardwired jobs toward softwired networks of multidisciplinary teams, each aligned to specific business outcomes. Rather than anchoring workers to single, static jobs, stability for workers and teams can come from a clearly defined purpose, specific strategic priorities, and tangible expected outcomes. This possibility is exciting for workers themselves, who prioritize a clearly defined purpose and mission nearly as highly as job stability.
- Develop structures that focus on outcomes, not actions.
Organizations are experimenting with new organizational structures to better align workers and work to business and human outcomes. For example, Haier has transformed into a “zero distance” company, where everyone is directly accountable to customers, employees are energetic entrepreneurs, and a formal hierarchy is replaced by an open ecosystem of users, inventors, and partners. The company has divided itself into more than 4,000 microenterprises of 10 to 15 employees, organized by specific business outcomes.13 All employees can join a microenterprise at will or start a new one. The microenterprises are grouped into platforms that identify opportunities for collaboration. Within the company, there are only three categories of employees: “platform owners,” “microenterprise owners,” and “entrepreneurs,” with no higher or lower rank.14
- Cultivate workforce ecosystems that go beyond the boundary of the organization through workforce ecosystems.
Some organizations are experimenting with creating networks that cross organizational boundaries to the benefit of the organization and the worker alike. Two major electronics companies created a job-swap program that supports the upskilling, advancement, and adaptability of the workforce across the two organizations. One company is leveraging the others’ engineers and business planning employees in their electronics and semiconductor businesses, using their workers to support the commercialization of services using metaverse technology and products that combine AI and image sensors. The other company is similarly leveraging employees from their job swap partner for research and development, specifically looking at how to utilize AI and virtual space technologies in industrial fields.15 These ecosystems are cropping up in the public sector too. The US Department of Defense and five private sector participants created the Public Private Talent Exchange to share talent across organizations through temporary projects and assignments.16
To create greater organizational agility in the face of an aging and shrinking working-age population and changing consumer behaviors, global hotel company IHG Hotels & Resorts in China now embraces different types and sources of workers, including workers from workforce crowdsourcing platforms. This allows the organization to increase speed and tap into under-represented talent pools, particularly those from other industries (especially from manufacturing sectors), as well as individuals seeking flexible, nontraditional work arrangements (for example, young mothers, freelancers, and college students seeking to gain working experiences). Gina Yue, vice president of human resources at IHG, said, “As we seek greater organizational agility, at the same time we also need to provide foundational stability and a culture of care for all our workers (including flexible workers) in a way that motivates them to choose IHG for where they distribute their workable hours.”17
To achieve this balance, IHG brings stability to the agile crowdsourcing strategy in three ways:
o Supporting and training managers in how to access, develop, and motivate flexible workers effectively
o Redesigning work to be task-based, rather than job-based, so work can be packaged to be performed effectively and in a meaningful way by different types of workers including crowdsourced workers
o Cocreating the redesign of work and roles by engaging hotel frontline managers, fostering collaboration and innovation to drive human performance
Anchoring the worker
In the new world of work, organizations can help workers make career choices not merely in terms of a progression but also growth in capabilities.
- Focus on skills more than jobs.
Organizations should consider moving past an understanding of workers solely as job holders to an understanding of workers as value creators. Kirsten Lange, the chief people officer for tech and enterprise operations and domain orchestration at the National Australian Bank (NAB), shared how NAB redesigned its delivery system in a way that allows for stability for its workers without an overreliance on formal job descriptions. NAB’s approach dedicates resources to specific customer needs, allowing them to contribute in various ways while also building experience and capability over time for faster delivery. It operates as an end-to-end business with clear strategic goals and aligned metrics for transparency. “With this model, we build long-term experience and capability, enabling us to deliver faster and more effectively. Everyone is aligned on the goals and invested in achieving the best outcomes for our customers.”
In another example, India-based tech company Zoho doesn’t define jobs rigidly and doesn’t assume there is an optimal pathway for individuals to move through the company. Instead, it encourages workers to develop new products and processes. Teams are built around diverse skill sets, which company leaders find ultimately results in better products. “We don’t have rigid job descriptions because they promote rigid thinking,” said Sridhar Vembu, founder and CEO of Zoho. “If you give people flexible pathways, they evolve into lots of roles they would have never thought they were interested in.”18
- Understand the individual worker.
Many organizations are beginning to collect data that enables a more nuanced understanding of workers at the individual level, often with a focus on using skills to better match workers to work. (See our chapter “Motivation at the unit of one” for how companies are tapping into data about individual worker motivations.)
Employees at Standard Chartered Bank, for example, now have “skills passports” that show what they are capable of beyond their job descriptions. An AI tool matches employees to project-specific roles. As employees gain skills, they can unlock more opportunities and career options both inside and outside the organization. Explains Group Head of HR and Chief Human Resources Officer Tanuj Kapilashrami, “We are moving away from past performance to agility and skills being a predictor of potential.”19
Meanwhile, brewing company Molson Coors has scrapped résumés altogether for certain positions in its European region. Applicants indicate their motivation for the role and how they might add to the culture at Molson Coors. They then take a task-based assessment and participate in an interview that might include giving a presentation on a favorite brand. “We are interested in seeing your behaviors in action and how they will help you become successful at Molson Coors, giving everyone the opportunity to show their potential, regardless of background or experience,” said one brand manager at the company.20
These are just some of the ways organizations can begin building new anchors for workers that provide stability while also enabling organizational agility. To continue establishing new anchors, leaders can also consider the who, how, and where of work (figure 4).
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