The core attributes of the future of work
All cars are required to have a safety warning printed on the side mirrors. ‘Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear,’ it says. I’ve always found this aphorism to be an excellent way of dealing with the future.
As we get on with a new decade, the future has never been nearer than it is today. India, uniquely, is poised at the cusp of change. With a median age of 29, we are the world’s ‘youngest country,’ and likely to remain so until 2030. This demographic window of opportunity has explosive potential.
The future will bring significant changes in ways of working. The goalposts of success will shift. To survive the future, companies need to start identifying new measures of success and building an organic new Code of Work that works for them. In my view, reimagining smarter organizational structures, deeply embedded with cultural and behavioral attributes, would be a good place to begin. Inclusiveness, humility, and an ability to deal with ambiguity will be essential to remaining relevant. Companies will also need to work on improving their employee experience, and seeing its correlation with business results.
TAPPING INTO TALENT ANALYTICS
People will continue to be an organization’s biggest asset and retaining top talent will be as essential as ever. I believe that it will become crucial to tap into talent analytics to flag attrition risks ahead of time.
Leveraging AI and automation can help companies keep a finger on the pulse of their people in real-time. This will enable timely retention discussions as well as succession planning.
REWIRING THE LEADERSHIP PIPELINE
Poised at a cusp, as we are, companies need to start today to develop leadership that is futureready and diverse, being evaluated on potential versus experience. Essential behavioral skills, such as learning agility, curiosity, and risk-taking abilities, will be game-changers in the future and should be prioritized already.
BROAD-BASED RESKILLING
Speaking of ‘learning,’ I believe skill shortages will continue to be a defining factor of enterprise competitiveness. The world is changing so fast that the half-life of learned, relevant skills has shrunk down to four or five years. Learning, unlearning, and relearning is critical. Learning & Development will need to be made more agile and broadbased. Instead of training individuals, we will need to start reskilling groups of people who work together to increase their collective intelligence and adapt to a continually changing world.
Standing where we are today, we know that building futureready organizations is critical. Developing skills and leaders will be necessary for creating a workforce of the future. But, just as change is said to be constant, the other immutable advantage on our side will remain the people who make companies what they are. And, in the future -- much like in the present -- investing in our people will be the key to success.