The Future Of Less Work

Nirit Cohen

What if the future of work isn’t about having all the answers but about asking the right questions? The Future Of Less Work podcast reimagines the relationships between individuals, organizations, and work. Hosted by work futurist Nirit Cohen, the podcast delves into the evolving work ecosystem through conversations with leaders, thinkers, and visionaries. Together, they explore how we are co-creating work—one puzzle piece at a time. https://workfutures.niritcohen.com/ https://linktr.ee/niritcohen

  1. How Humans And AI Work Together In Companies with Brandon Metcalf

    4 DAYS AGO

    How Humans And AI Work Together In Companies with Brandon Metcalf

    As AI moves from supporting work to performing it, organizations face a far more complex challenge than adopting new tools. They must redesign how work itself is structured, measured, and managed when part of the workforce is no longer human. In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Brandon Metcalf, Founder and CEO of Asymbl, to explore what it really means to operate a hybrid workforce of humans and digital workers. Together, they unpack how companies must rethink job design from the ground up. Through concrete examples, from recruiting workflows to AI-generated executive briefings, the conversation reveals how easily organizations can lose critical business outcomes when they automate without understanding the full context of work. Nirit and Brandon explore the implications for talent development, leadership, and organizational design. How do you train people to manage work they no longer perform themselves? What happens to entry-level learning when foundational tasks disappear? And how do leaders ensure their organizations don’t simply layer AI onto outdated processes? Looking ahead, the conversation highlights what will separate organizations that succeed from those that struggle: the willingness to rethink work from first principles. Rather than forcing new technology into legacy models, leading companies will redesign their operations around outcomes, blending human and digital capabilities into a cohesive system. If you’re navigating AI transformation or questioning how work should be structured in a world of digital teammates, this episode offers a sharp and practical perspective on what it takes to build organizations that truly operate in the future of work. https://youtu.be/cYJsCMTWv9U  Guest Information: Brandon Metcalf is the Founder and CEO of Asymbl, a workforce orchestration company that helps organizations coordinate human employees and digital workers as unified systems. He leads Salesforce consulting, digital labor advisory, and workforce applications to scale businesses with speed and discipline. A serial founder, he built and exited Talent Rover (Inc. 500 #9, acquired 2018) and integrated Blueprint Advisory into Asymbl. Harvard Business School OPM graduate with deep staffing roots, he emphasizes practical execution, measurable outcomes, and close Salesforce partnerships. Links:  Asymbl Website: https://www.asymbl.com/Asymbl LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/asymbl-inc/ Brandon's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/metcalf/Chapters: 00:00 What Is Workforce Orchestration and Why It Matters Now01:16 How Do Humans and AI Work Together in Companies02:21 What Changes When Work Becomes Hybrid Human and AI02:53 What Is a Digital Worker vs AI Tool Explained05:18 Why Automating Tasks Can Break Business Outcomes06:30 What Is “Motivation for Success” in Job Design07:21 Why AI Automation Doesn’t Deliver Real ROI08:55 How to Redesign Jobs for AI and Digital Workers09:54 Why Job Descriptions Miss What Actually Matters12:16 What Is the Talent Paradox in the Age of AI13:11 Will AI Replace Jobs or Change Roles Instead15:02 How Do You Train People to Manage AI Output16:02 Why Human Skills Shift From Doing Work to Defining Outcomes17:08 How to Coach and Manage AI Digital Workers17:28 Real Example of AI Running Business Insights (Bradley Case)19:44 Why AI Needs Continuous Coaching Not Set-and-Forget20:17 How Managers Should Oversee AI and Human Teams23:19 How Technology Changes Jobs Over Time (Fax to AI)23:45 What Leaders Get Wrong About AI Productivity24:44 How to Implement AI Without Breaking Your Business25:43 What Will AI-First Organizations Look Like26:39 Why Some Companies Succeed With AI and Others Fail28:03 Why You Must Rethink Business Processes for AI29:03 What Question Leaders Should Ask About the Future of Work29:26 How Would You Design Your Business From Scratch With AI

    31 min
  2. Why People-Centered Leadership Works Better with Brian Eliott

    14 APR

    Why People-Centered Leadership Works Better with Brian Eliott

    Why are so many companies trying to return to the old rules of work just as technology is pushing organizations forward? And what happens when leaders treat AI primarily as a cost-cutting tool instead of using it to expand human potential? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Brian Elliott, CEO of Work Forward and a leading voice in the conversation about modern leadership and workplace transformation. Together they explore why the renewed push toward command-and-control leadership is unlikely to succeed in today’s organizations. Drawing on years of research and leadership experience, Elliott explains why headlines about strict return-to-office policies do not reflect what most organizations are actually doing. The deeper challenge facing leaders is not where people work but how work itself is designed. Productivity today depends on clarity of goals, trust in employees, and the ability to align teams around meaningful outcomes. The conversation also explores how this leadership shift intersects with the rapid adoption of AI. Many organizations are approaching AI as a tool for efficiency and cost reduction. Elliott argues that this framing limits the real opportunity. Companies that treat AI as a way to amplify human capability and unlock new value will move much faster than those focused only on automation. Nirit and Brian discuss what it takes to build organizations where people and technology work together effectively. They examine how leaders can help teams experiment with AI, why shared learning matters, and how a clear sense of purpose can guide organizations through rapid technological change. If you are trying to understand what leadership looks like in the age of AI and why trust, clarity, and human potential matter more than control, this conversation offers a powerful perspective on where work is heading next. https://youtu.be/YFmMhITZVyU  Guest Information: Brian Elliott is CEO of Work Forward, executive-in-residence at Charter, and a Senior Advisor with BCG. A recognized expert on the future of work and the bestselling author of How the Future Works, he spent 25 years in tech as a startup CEO and executive at Google and Slack before co-founding Future Forum, a think tank focused on the future of work. He publishes Flex Index, the Work Forward and Charter newsletters, and was named to Forbes' Future of Work 50. His work enables leaders to build a future of work that's better for people and organizations, combining research-backed insights with practical advice from 30 years of leadership experience. For the latest, read his newsletter and follow on LinkedIn. Links:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/belliott https://www.theworkforward.com/ https://theworkforward.substack.com/ Chapters: 00:00 Why Command And Control Leadership Is Failing01:00 What Is Really Happening With Return To Office Policies02:20 Why Leaders Don’t Trust Employees At Work03:30 Why Measuring Activity Kills Productivity06:30 Why Employees Fear AI Replacing Their Jobs07:40 Why AI Adoption Fails Without Clear Goals09:00 How To Measure Productivity Instead Of AI Usage13:00 Why Internal Competition Hurts Team Performance14:15 What Is AI Burnout And How To Prevent It15:40 Who Benefits From AI Productivity Gains18:30 How To Train Teams To Use AI Effectively22:00 Why Trust Matters More Than Location In Work25:00 How To Balance Flexibility And Collaboration29:30 What Future Of Work Should We Create

    33 min
  3. Why One Moment Can Change Your Career with Anthony Klotz

    3 APR

    Why One Moment Can Change Your Career with Anthony Klotz

    What actually pushes someone from thinking about change to finally doing something about it? Why do some people leave their jobs while others renegotiate their relationship with work instead? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Anthony Klotz, professor of organizational behavior at UCL School of Management and the researcher credited with coining the Great Resignation, to explore the invisible moments that reshape careers. Drawing from his new book Jolted, Klotz explains how careers rarely change gradually. Instead, they shift in response to sudden events—what he calls “jolts”—that cause people to pause and rethink their relationship with work. Together, Nirit and Anthony unpack the many forms these jolts can take, from workplace disappointments and career milestones to personal events and global shocks. The conversation explores why these moments are becoming more common in a world of nonlinear careers, why the traditional stay-or-quit decision is no longer the only response, and how many people now respond to jolts by renegotiating their work rather than walking away. They also examine how the pandemic acted as a collective jolt that reshaped expectations about work and life—and why artificial intelligence may become the next wave of career-defining moments. From identity shifts caused by new technology to the ways managers can recognize and support employees through pivotal moments, the discussion reveals how careers are increasingly shaped by reflection, experimentation, and reconfiguration. If you’ve ever experienced a moment that made you suddenly question your job, your priorities, or your future at work, this episode offers a powerful lens for understanding why—and what to do next. Want to dive deeper into this topic? Read Nirit’s Forbes article, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠"⁠⁠⁠⁠The Moment Employees Decide To Leave — And Why Leaders Miss It", to explore these ideas further.   https://youtu.be/Kv025f8pzLM  Guest Information: Anthony Klotz is a professor of organizational behavior at UCL School of Management in London. He is best known for predicting a global pandemic–related labor shift and dubbing it the Great Resignation. A leading scholar on the psychology of work, he has written for Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal, and his research is regularly published in the leading academic journals in management. He has discussed the current and future of work with media outlets, including NBC News, Bloomberg Businessweek, CNN, CNBC, Today, The New York Times, Financial Times, BBC, and NPR, and with executive teams at numerous Fortune 100 firms. Links: Author Site: https://www.mgmt.ucl.ac.uk/people/anthonyklotz  Chapters: 00:00 – Why You Suddenly Want to Quit Your Job01:05 – What Makes You Rethink Your Career Path02:00 – Signs It’s Time to Change Jobs or Careers04:45 – Did COVID Change How We Think About Work06:29 – Should You Quit Your Job or Stay07:45 – Is Quiet Quitting Actually Setting Boundaries10:30 – How AI Is Changing Jobs and Career Decisions13:20 – Can Managers Tell When You’re About to Quit15:20 – How to Talk to Your Boss When You Feel Stuck17:00 – What to Do If You Don’t Want to Quit but Aren’t Happy17:45 – How People Start Side Hustles or Career Changes19:18 – What Question Should You Ask About Your Career20:40 – Can AI Help You Find Better Work

    22 min
  4. Who's Responsible For AI In Regulated Industries with Arya Bolurfrushan

    25 MAR

    Who's Responsible For AI In Regulated Industries with Arya Bolurfrushan

    What happens when AI moves into places where error is not an option like banking approvals, medical claims, pharmaceutical compliance, the future of work becomes legal, operational, and deeply human. In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Arya Bolurfrushan, Founder and CEO of AppliedAI, to explore what happens when automation enters highly regulated, mission-critical workflows where every decision must be auditable, defensible, and accountable. Together, they unpack the concept of “supervised automation” where AI performs the bulk of the execution while humans remain responsible for final judgment, mid-process checkpoints, and liability. Arya explains why fully autonomous systems struggle in regulated environments, how “compliance as code” can embed legal constraints directly into AI workflows, and why accountability cannot simply disappear as machines take over execution. What does it mean to be accountable when you no longer do most of the work? How do professionals develop judgment if entry-level “grunt work” disappears? And who carries risk, reputation, and responsibility in an AI-native organization? If you’re leading AI transformation in regulated industries—or simply wondering what remains uniquely human when machines execute most of the process, this episode will challenge how you think about work, accountability, and meaning in the age of AI. Want to dive deeper into this topic? Read Nirit’s Forbes article, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠"⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠If AI Does The Work, How Do People Build Expertise?⁠⁠", to explore these ideas further.   https://youtu.be/F9Ty5yLKx0Y  Guest Information: Arya H. Bolurfrushan is the Founder and CEO of AppliedAI, the world's most boring artificial intelligence company focused on increasing productivity of mission-critical workflows in regulated industries by an order of magnitude. Previously, Arya co-founded Accrete Capital, a technology-backed investment platform democratizing alternative investments that has deployed over $2B in equity. Before that, Arya served as GM, CFO and on the Nominations Committee of the Board of Directors of RAK Petroleum, taking the company public on the Oslo Stock Exchange (RAKP.OL). He began his career at Goldman Sachs’s Investment Strategy Group in New York, focused on private equity and technology. Arya studied at Oxford, Stanford, Cambridge, and the Cordon Bleu, and received his MSc and BSc from Carnegie Mellon and an MBA from Harvard Business School.   Chapters: 00:00 What Happens When AI Enters Highly Regulated Industries?00:47 How Do You Design AI Where Error Is Not An Option?02:16 How Do Companies Safely Deploy AI In Regulated Environments?02:44 What Is Supervised Automation In AI Workflows?04:50 Why Can’t You Fully Automate Regulated Industries?05:51 Who Is Liable When AI Makes Decisions?09:06 Is Human Oversight In AI A Temporary Or Permanent Model?10:40 Does AI Make Knowledge Work Better Or Worse?12:20 How Does AI Increase Productivity In Regulated Workflows?12:46 How Do Workers Develop Judgment In AI-Driven Jobs?13:48 Will AI Eliminate Entry-Level Jobs In Regulated Industries?16:36 Can You Train Judgment Without Hands-On Experience?17:31 How Does AI Force Companies To Document Hidden Knowledge?17:53 How Should Regulation Change For AI In Critical Work?18:51 Where Should Humans Fit In AI-Native Workflows?19:45 Why Does AI Require Business Process Reengineering?20:14 Why Is AI Transformation A Human Problem Not A Tech Problem?20:58 Why Is Innovation Harder In Highly Regulated Industries?21:30 Can AI Embed Compliance Directly Into Workflows?23:45 What Will AI In Regulated Industries Look Like In 5 Years?24:58 Will Regulation Protect Human Jobs In The Age Of AI?28:15 What Happens If Work Is No Longer Needed For Income?29:29 Who Should Benefit From AI Productivity Gains?31:23 Why Do Employees Resist AI Adoption?32:41 Why Should Labor Be Priced By Output Instead Of Time?

    37 min
  5. Why AI Demands More Of Middle Management with Barbara Wittmann

    18 MAR

    Why AI Demands More Of Middle Management with Barbara Wittmann

    As AI accelerates across organizations, most conversations still focus on tools, pilots, and productivity gains. But AI is also exposing cracks that were already there - misaligned leadership, siloed systems, fragile middle layers, and outdated assumptions about how transformation works. In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Barbara Wittmann, founder of the Digital Wisdom Collective and former interim CIO, to explore why AI is less a technology shift and more a leadership mirror. Barbara argues that the real constraint in AI transformation isn’t infrastructure - it’s human infrastructure. Together, Nirit and Barbara unpack why middle management is the critical layer where strategy meets execution. They explore how AI surfaces governance gaps, weak data foundations, and cultural misalignment faster than any previous technology wave. Barbara challenges leaders to look under the hood and redesign how people, systems, and decision-making work together. The conversation dives into what “Digital Wisdom” really means - the human capacity for asking better questions, sensing system dynamics, aligning across functions, and building collective intelligence in an era of accelerating change. They also examine why HR and IT can no longer operate in parallel universes, and why transformation must shift from episodic shake-ups to continuous evolution.Finally, Barbara offers practical advice for managers in the middle: build coalitions of the willing, step out of the echo chamber, and strengthen the uniquely human capabilities that AI cannot replicate.If you’re navigating AI transformation and wondering whether the real upgrade needed is technical or human, this conversation will challenge how you see both leadership and work itself. https://youtu.be/fai6Nofk4t4 Guest Information: Barbara Wittmann is the founder of the Digital Wisdom Collective, helping organizations unlock the human side of AI and transformation. A strategist, advisor, and former interim CIO, she specializes in aligning business, IT, and people by developing the “Human Infrastructure” that makes technology work. Barbara is known for her work with global companies, her cross-industry leadership programs, and her bold message that the middle layer holds the key to the future of work. Links: www.digitalwisdom.co https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbarawittmann/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/digitalwisdomcollective/ https://substack.com/@barbarawittmann/ Chapters: 00:00 What Is Digital Wisdom In The Age Of AI 01:06 Why Do We Need A Digital Wisdom Collective 02:15 What Is The Human Advantage Over AI 03:21 Do Humans Need To Reskill For AI 03:57 Why Answers Are Cheap And Questions Matter More 04:24 How AI Changes Organizational Thinking Models 05:04 How Should Leaders Redesign Work With AI 05:37 Why Middle Management Is Critical In AI Transformation 06:01 Should Companies Eliminate Middle Management 06:03 Why You Can’t Delegate Complexity To AI 07:30 Why AI Pilots Fail Without Process Redesign 08:22 What Is Human Infrastructure In Organizations 09:18 Why HR And IT Must Work Together In AI 10:34 How AI Transformation Is Different From Digital Transformation 11:09 How AI Exposes Organizational Misalignment 11:45 Why AI Pilots Often Fail In Companies 13:10 Does AI Transformation Start From The Bottom Up 13:45 Why Poor Data Breaks AI Strategy 14:16 Is AI Just Automation Rebranded 15:26 Why Companies Must Fix Data Before AI 16:18 Who Is Responsible For AI Transformation 17:01 Should HR And IT Be Combined 18:15 What Should Managers Do Differently With AI 18:29 How To Build A Coalition Of The Willing At Work 19:42 Why Transformation Must Become Continuous 20:51 What Is The Most Important Future Of Work Question 21:20 How Humans And AI Will Co-Create Work 22:16 How Do You Find Your Unique Human Value 23:08 Why You Must Step Outside Your Echo Chamber 24:11 How To Discover Your Unique Value At Work 24:49 Why Self-Awareness Matters More In The AI Era

    26 min
  6. How Companies Can Get The Most Value From AI with David Mallon

    10 MAR

    How Companies Can Get The Most Value From AI with David Mallon

    AI is no longer just another workplace technology. It is a general-purpose capability that is beginning to reshape how work is designed, how decisions are made, and how organizations create value. In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with David Mallon, Chief Futurist and Head of Research for Deloitte’s Human Capital practice, to unpack the biggest insights from the 2026 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends report.  The conversation explores why this moment of AI adoption is fundamentally different from past technology shifts. Unlike earlier tools that automated tasks, generative AI is entering knowledge work itself, acting as collaborator, analyst, and decision partner. That shift forces organizations to rethink how humans and machines work together and how leadership, productivity, and expertise evolve in an AI-enabled workplace. Nirit and David discuss why many companies are approaching AI through a narrow productivity lens, focusing on efficiency rather than redesigning work around human-machine collaboration. They examine the growing need for leaders to intentionally design how people interact with AI systems, orchestrate work across humans and intelligent tools, and rethink performance when technology can dramatically amplify individual output. The episode also explores a deeper challenge: how workers develop expertise when AI increasingly performs the early tasks that traditionally built experience. As organizations move faster to adopt AI, leaders must decide how to balance productivity, learning, and human judgment in a workplace where machines are part of the team. If you’re trying to understand what AI really means for organizations—not just tools, but the design of work itself—this conversation looks at the choices leaders must make as human and machine collaboration becomes the new operating model of work. Want to dive deeper into this topic? Read Nirit’s Forbes article, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠"⁠⁠⁠⁠AI Is Creating Culture Debt In Organizations⁠⁠", to explore these ideas further.   https://youtu.be/1KJeMLNXyZE Guest Information: David Mallon, a managing director at Deloitte Consulting LLP, is the head of research and chief futurist for Human Capital in the United States. With more than 25 years of experience in human capital, he helps organizations sense, analyze, and act with purpose. Mallon has been a key contributor to Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Trends study since its inception and leads Insights2Action—Deloitte’s Human Capital decision intelligence capability.  Links:  2026 Human Capital Trends report: https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/topics/talent/human-capital-trends.html Forbes article on Culture Debt: https://www.forbes.com/sites/niritcohen/2026/03/04/ai-is-creating-culture-debt-in-organizations/ Chapters: 00:00 — What Is the Deloitte 2026 Human Capital Trends Report About?01:29 — Why Is AI Different From Previous Technology Revolutions?05:46 — Will AI Replace Human Thinking or Augment It?10:03 — How Will Workers Build Experience If AI Does the Work?13:28 — How Should Humans and AI Work Together at Work?17:49 — Are Companies Using AI Only for Productivity Gains?21:09 — What Must Change in Leadership for the AI Era?23:09 — What Surprised Researchers in the 2026 Human Capital Trends Report?24:01 — What Is Culture Debt and Why Should Leaders Care?26:57 — Are Executives Trusting AI Decisions Too Much?27:47 — What Is the Most Important Leadership Insight About AI?28:54 — How Should Organizations Design Human–AI Collaboration?31:46 — What Question Should Leaders Ask About the Future of Work?

    34 min
  7. How AI Changes Workforce Planning with Vijay Swaminathan

    25 FEB

    How AI Changes Workforce Planning with Vijay Swaminathan

    What if the biggest barrier to AI transformation isn’t technology at all, but the fact that most organizations don’t actually understand how work gets done? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Vijay Swaminathan, co-founder and CEO of Draup, to explore what really breaks when AI meets industrial-age assumptions about jobs, roles, and headcount. The conversation begins with a fundamental shift in strategic workforce planning. Once a headcount exercise buried inside HR, it is now being pulled into the center of enterprise strategy as organizations try to allocate work between humans, machines, contractors, and AI agents. Vijay explains why traditional job descriptions no longer reflect reality, how large portions of work remain hidden inside workflows and processes, and why this invisible layer holds the greatest opportunity for AI-driven productivity. Together, Nirit and Vijay unpack how roles are fragmenting into builders, orchestrators, and synthesizers, why labor arbitrage is losing its power, and how leaders often underestimate the complexity of the human work that remains after automation. They also explore why metrics of power, control, and success built around headcount and org charts are starting to collapse, and what replaces them. This episode is a deep dive into the uncomfortable truth behind AI transformation: before organizations can redesign jobs, they must first see the work itself. And that shift, from org charts to workflows, may be the hardest change of all. If you’re trying to make sense of AI, skills volatility, and the future of workforce planning, this conversation offers a clear lens into what’s already changing beneath the surface.   https://youtu.be/zkSdBx8L8zM   Guest Information: Vijay Swaminathan is the Co-Founder & CEO of Draup, an AI copilot that helps global enterprises make strategic talent decisions. A recognized thought leader in the talent space, Vijay brings deep expertise in product ideation, concept-to-product transitions, and platform enablement. His career is marked by a strong command of data analytics, operations research, and strategic management. Vijay has designed numerous quantitative models and heuristics focused on global talent dynamics, cutting-edge business analytics, and strategic business maneuvers. He is also the co-founder of Zinnov, a leading research & advisory firm, and TalentNeuron, which was acquired by CEB, a Gartner company (NYSE: IT). Previously, Vijay held senior positions at Hewitt Associates and KPMG Consulting.   Links:https://draup.com/talent/ceo-newsletter/mastering-ai-readiness-for-hr-leaders https://draup.com/talent/ceo-newsletter/the-hidden-work-in-hr-building-on-mits-project-iceberg  https://draup.com/talent/ceo-newsletter/tech-talent-strategies-of-2025-draups-annual-report https://draup.com/talent/ceo-newsletter/the-new-frontier-of-strategic-workforce-planning   Chapters: 00:00 – How AI Is Changing Strategic Workforce Planning01:25 – What Does Strategic Workforce Planning Mean in the Age of AI?05:35 – Why Job Descriptions No Longer Reflect Real Work07:48 – How AI Exposes Hidden Work Inside Organizations09:25 – Can AI Read Process Maps and Redesign Workflows?11:02 – Why Companies Struggle to Document Real Tasks12:58 – Builders vs Orchestrators: Who Actually Uses AI in Enterprises?15:38 – Where Leaders Oversimplify AI Workforce Transformation17:25 – Why Human Verification Gets More Complex With AI20:09 – What Happens to Work in an AI-Driven Organization?22:36 – Why AI Forces Companies Beyond the Org Chart24:23 – Rethinking Headcount Models in the Age of AI26:21 – Should Workforce Planning Focus on Workflows Instead of Jobs?

    29 min
  8. What Happens When The Job Stops Being The Basic Unit Of Work with Carrol Chang

    17 FEB

    What Happens When The Job Stops Being The Basic Unit Of Work with Carrol Chang

    When work breaks apart into tasks and AI steps in as a real participant, not just a helper, the familiar structure of jobs begins to unravel. The real question becomes how work gets recomposed, who orchestrates it, and how people redefine their value when execution is no longer the core of the role. In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Carrol Chang, President of Andela, to explore what happens when the atomic unit of work shifts from jobs to tasks. Drawing on her experience leading global talent systems and marketplaces, Carrol explains why AI is forcing organizations to rethink not just productivity, but how work is allocated, priced, managed, and ultimately experienced. Together, Nirit and Carrol unpack why breaking work into tasks doesn’t eliminate the need for humans, but radically elevates it. As AI takes on execution, people move into roles that demand judgment, coordination,feedback, and orchestration. The conversation explores why every individual contributor is becoming more like a manager, how professional identity evolves when tasks change faster than titles, and why leadership now depends on setting expectations for continuous role reinvention. The episode also looks at what this shift unlocks beyond organizational boundaries. As work becomes more modular, highly specialized skills can be deployed across multiple projects, opening the door to new ways of earning, learning, and balancing life. Platforms, AI-enabled onboarding, and global talent networks emerge as the infrastructure that makes this possible, allowing work to scale without forcing everyone into a 40-hour week designed for the industrial era. If you’re thinking about how AI reshapes careers, why flexibility is moving upstream into high-skill work, and what it really means to design work in a world where intelligence is abundant, this conversation offers a grounded and human-centered lens on what comes next. https://youtu.be/nYkUjZBL0sE Guest Information:Serving as CEO of Andela since September 2024, Carrol Chang is committed to scaling the business while remaining true to its mission-driven approach of connecting brilliance with opportunity. She joined Andela from Uber, where she led efforts to improve work for nearly 7 million flexible workers around the world as the Global Head of Driver & Courier Operations. Carrol has held positions with McKinsey Company, Portraits of Hope, and the administration of President Barack Obama. She is passionate about expanding opportunity in all forms to underrepresented populations and making commerce more generous and kind for all stakeholders.  She holds a BA from Harvard and both a JD and MBA from Northwestern University.  Chapters:00:00 Why Jobs Are No Longer the Basic Unit of Work01:36 What Does It Mean to Break Jobs Into Tasks With AI?03:44 Can Task-Based Work Scale Inside Large Organizations?04:10 How AI Turns Every Employee Into a Manager05:40 Do Companies Need to Redesign Jobs After AI?07:44 How Should Professionals Redefine Their Identity in the Age of AI?09:39 Will AI Change Job Titles and Organizational Structures?11:41 Do We Need to Rebundle Work Into New Job Structures?13:29 Can Specialized Skills Be Deployed Across Multiple Projects?15:51 How Can Organizations Manage Work Done by Fractional Talent?17:00 Is This the Evolution of the Gig Economy for High-Skilled Work?18:45 How AI Makes Platform-Based Work Scalable for Enterprises19:36 What Happens to Culture When Work Is Unbundled?21:49 Can AI Accelerate Employee Onboarding and Culture Fit?23:42 How Company Email Norms Reveal Organizational Culture24:30 Will AI Reduce the 40-Hour Workweek?26:30 How Should Leaders Prepare for the AI Change Curve?

    29 min
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About

What if the future of work isn’t about having all the answers but about asking the right questions? The Future Of Less Work podcast reimagines the relationships between individuals, organizations, and work. Hosted by work futurist Nirit Cohen, the podcast delves into the evolving work ecosystem through conversations with leaders, thinkers, and visionaries. Together, they explore how we are co-creating work—one puzzle piece at a time. https://workfutures.niritcohen.com/ https://linktr.ee/niritcohen

Information

  • Creator
    Nirit Cohen
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    80
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Nirit Cohen
  • Show Website
    The Future Of Less Work

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