The Future Of Less Work

Nirit Cohen
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Business
  • Updated Weekly

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. 5d ago

    How Do Humans Create Value When AI Does The Work with Nitin Seth

    What Is The Human Edge In The Age Of AI? How Do Humans Create Value When AI Does The Work?  In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Nitin Seth, Co-Founder and CEO of Incedo and author of Human Edge in the AI Age, to explore how AI is changing the meaning of work, careers and human contribution. Nitin argues that the future of work may require a shift from employability to entrepreneurship, not necessarily because everyone will start a company, but because people will need to create new value with AI. He explains why execution alone will no longer be enough, why humans must move toward creativity, context and problem framing, and why organizations need to rethink how they allow ideas and experimentation to emerge from inside the business. Together, they discuss what it means to move from doing work to creating work, why AI-native early-career talent may generate surprising output, why experience alone is no longer protection, and how the middle layer of organizations may need to shift from task management to domain expertise and problem solving. They also explore why human context still matters, how AI may gradually absorb more of it, and why the next human opportunity may come from asking: what can we now do that we couldn’t do before? Whether you are leading AI transformation, rethinking talent development, or trying to understand how to stay relevant in the AI age, this conversation offers a practical and thought-provoking look at the human edge of work when AI does more of the doing. https://youtu.be/DGytt67x-6o Guest Information: Nitin Seth is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Incedo Inc, where he partners with Fortune 200 enterprises to reimagine operating models for the AI age—embedding intelligence into workflows, decision-making, and business models to drive measurable outcomes and sustained competitive advantage. With nearly three decades of leadership experience, he has previously served as Chief Operating Officer at Flipkart, Managing Director at Fidelity International, where he also led global strategy and served as Country Head for India, and Director at McKinsey & Company.   Links: Nitin’s Blog: https://nseth71.blogspot.com/Human Edge in the AI Age: https://humanedgeintheaiage.com/Chapters: 00:00 How Do Humans Create Value When AI Does The Work?01:15 Is Entrepreneurship The New Career Skill In The AI Age?02:55 What Does Entrepreneurship Look Like Inside Companies?03:42 Why AI Will Change The Structure Of Work07:15 How AI-Native Companies Are Redesigning Jobs10:14 How Leaders Can Unlock Employee Innovation With AI12:07 How Entry-Level Workers Use AI To Create More Output16:09 Will AI Replace Middle Managers Or Redefine Them?17:29 Why Context Is The Human Edge In AI Work20:09 How To Train Early-Career Talent In The AI Age23:25 Why Domain Experts Matter More With AI25:04 What Is Unique Human Value When Everyone Has AI?26:25 Context, Creativity And The Future Of Human Work29:06 How AI Creates Entrepreneurial Opportunities In Every Industry31:39 What Question Should We Ask About The Future Of Work?33:11 How AI Can Expand Human Potential

    How Do Humans Create Value When AI Does The Work with Nitin Seth

  2. Sep 22

    Can AI Judge Your Skills Better Than Your Manager with Kian Katanforoosh

    Can AI measure skills at work? How Will AI Change Learning and Employee Development? What if AI could tell what you’re actually capable of, not from your resume, job title or performance review, but from the work you do every day? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Kian Katanforoosh, Founder and CEO of Workera and Stanford Adjunct Lecturer, to explore how AI could change the way we measure skills, learn at work and understand human capability. Kian explains how AI can observe work in real time, identify strengths and skill gaps, and provide personalized coaching exactly when people need it. They explore whether verified skills profiles could eventually move with us across jobs, how AI is changing what expertise looks like in fields such as software engineering, and whether AI could one day assess human capabilities more fairly than managers do. The conversation also tackles the harder questions: Can AI really measure judgment and critical thinking? Who owns the data? What happens when AI itself keeps taking over more of the skills we are trying to develop? And why might our ability to keep learning become one of the most important forms of human agency in the age of AI? For leaders rethinking talent, learning and workforce capability, this episode explores what changes when AI can finally see not just the work people do, but what they are capable of becoming. https://youtu.be/EnConpvUupQ   Guest Information: Kian Katanforoosh is the ‍Founder and CEO of Workera. He is also an award-winning lecturer at Stanford University, where he co-created their Deep Learning program alongside AI legend Andrew Ng and has helped teach AI to over 4 million people. Kian has been acknowledged for his teaching excellence by Stanford with the Walter J. Gores Award, Stanford’s highest teaching award, and the Centennial Award for Excellence in teaching. Links:   https://www.workera.ai/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/kiankatan/https://www.workera.ai/platform/ai-agent/ambient Chapters: 00:00 Can AI Judge Your Skills Better Than Your Manager?01:28 Can AI Really Measure Human Skills and Expertise?04:20 How AI Is Changing the Skills We Need at Work06:39 What Human Skills Will Still Matter in the Age of AI?09:10 How AI Can Coach You While You Work10:29 Is AI Skills Monitoring Workplace Surveillance?14:09 Will Verified Skills Replace Resumes and Credentials?16:16 What Skills Will Become More Valuable Because of AI?17:52 How AI Is Changing Software Engineering Skills19:00 Can AI Teach Leadership, Judgment and Critical Thinking?21:31 Can AI Assess Employees More Fairly Than Managers?23:23 Can AI Make Hiring and Performance Reviews More Fair?25:43 How Do Humans Keep Learning as AI Takes Over More Work?

    Can AI Judge Your Skills Better Than Your Manager with Kian Katanforoosh

  3. Sep 17

    What Happens When AI Learns What Your People Know with Katy George

    What Happens When AI Learns Your Company’s Knowledge? How Do Humans Stay Valuable When AI Gets Smarter? How Do Companies Redesign Work Around AI? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Katy George, Corporate Vice President of AI and Work Transformation at Microsoft and co-author of the Becoming a Frontier Firm playbook, to explore the business case for humans in an AI-powered organization. George explains why so much knowledge work is still tacit, undocumented and shaped by experience, relationships and context, and why organizations first need to understand how work actually happens before they can redesign it with AI. Together, they explore what happens when that tacit knowledge is codified into AI systems. George describes a continuous learning cycle in which humans teach AI what the organization knows, AI adds capabilities humans did not have before and people continue to apply judgment and creativity to raise the bar again. They also discuss why the real opportunity is not simply to make existing work faster, but to use AI to create new capabilities, experiences and forms of value. The conversation also examines how organizations will need to change around that cycle: redesigning early-career development so people still build judgment, loosening traditional job boundaries, moving toward more dynamic roles and end-to-end work, and changing what managers are expected to do. George shares Microsoft's early thinking that humans may increasingly “aim the machine, train the machine and own and govern the machine,” while acknowledging that the operating model to support that continuous learning system is still being worked out. Whether you are leading AI transformation, redesigning work or thinking about the future of human expertise, this conversation asks a deeper question: as AI learns more of what organizations already know, how do people keep creating what comes next? https://youtu.be/BmKjcIBShTI Guest Information: Katy George is Corporate Vice President of AI & Work Transformation at Microsoft. She leads a team focused on understanding AI’s impact on labor markets and shaping Microsoft’s AI & Work strategy. Previously, she was Chief People Officer and a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company, where she led global operations and workforce research. Katy holds a Ph.D. in Business Economics from Harvard and a B.A. from Oberlin College. Her work bridges technology, labor economics, and organizational design to prepare for the future of work.   Links: https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2026/09/17/what-weve-learned-from-microsofts-own-ai-transformation/   Chapters: 00:00 What Is A Microsoft Frontier Firm? 02:24 What Is The Human Role In AI Transformation? 03:37 How Do You Capture Tacit Knowledge With AI? 05:12 What Happens When AI Learns Human Judgment? 06:41 How Should Early-Career Jobs Change With AI? 08:54 How Do People Build Judgment And Experience With AI? 10:27 How Microsoft Is Codifying Tacit Knowledge Into AI 12:34 How Can AI Create New Value, Not Just Efficiency? 14:22 Why Organizations Block AI Transformation 16:19 How Do You Redesign Work From An AI-First Blank Page? 18:29 What Is The Manager’s Role In Human-AI Teams? 21:11 Why Managers Need To Use AI Themselves 23:02 What Human Skills Will Matter As AI Agents Improve? 24:54 Can Large Organizations Really Transform With AI? 25:47 What Skills Will Keep Humans Valuable In The AI Age? 26:26 What Should Early-Career Professionals Do About AI?

    What Happens When AI Learns What Your People Know with Katy George

  4. Sep 8

    How AI Is Changing Communication at Work with David Maffei

    How is AI changing the way we communicate at work? And what happens to trust when employees can no longer tell whether a message from a leader was actually written by that leader? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with David Maffei, Senior Vice President and General Manager at Staffbase, to explore what authentic workplace communication means in the age of AI. Together, they discuss how AI can personalize communication at scale while making it harder to know what is genuinely human, why efficiency can come at the expense of authenticity, and what happens when people begin communicating with colleagues the way they communicate with AI. They explore the connection between communication, trust and belonging, why knowing what matters to employees has to come before communicating with them, and why human experience and relationships may become more valuable as AI makes intelligence increasingly accessible. As AI becomes embedded in everyday work, David argues that the response may be surprisingly human: communication will need to become more personal, transparent and authentic than ever before. Whether you're leading AI transformation, managing distributed teams, building organizational culture or simply wondering how AI will change human relationships at work, this conversation explores what we risk losing when communication becomes more automated, and what may become more valuable because of it. https://youtu.be/AOpSEHgSpXo Guest Information:David Maffei is the SVP/GM Americas at Staffbase and a seasoned executive with over 20 years of experience driving strategic and operational growth for both public and private companies. He leads the go-to-market strategy across the US, Canada, and Mexico, sitting on the global Executive Leadership Team and overseeing sales, marketing, operations, and customer success. With deep expertise in B2B technology, David has a proven track record in scaling teams, executing direct and indirect sales models, forging strategic alliances, and expanding internationally. His leadership has driven major growth milestones across multiple organizations, including doubling Carbonite’s B2B SaaS revenue, tripling Bridgeline Digital’s SaaS business, and establishing Akumina as a category leader through a strategicpartnership with Accenture Ventures. At Staffbase, he continues to deliver exceptional value to enterprise and mid-market clients in the fast-evolving employee communications space. Links:https://staffbase.com/ Chapters:00:00 How AI Is Changing Communication at Work02:22 What Does Authentic Communication Mean in the Age of AI?06:03 Can AI Personalization Feel Authentic?07:55 Why Workplace Communication Needs to Start With Listening09:16 How Can Leaders Personalize Communication at Scale?13:50 Is AI Changing How We Communicate?15:58 How Is AI Changing Human Communication Skills?17:25 Does AI Efficiency Come at the Cost of Authenticity?18:21 What Human Value Can AI Not Replace?20:49 Why Human Communication Is a Competitive Advantage23:04 How Do You Create Belonging in a Digital Workplace?24:42 How Should Leaders Communicate With Distributed Teams?28:20 Will AI Make Workplace Communication More Human?32:12 How AI Is Blurring Work and Life34:32 How Can You Stay Valuable in the Future of Work?

    How AI Is Changing Communication at Work with David Maffei

  5. Sep 1

    Can You Trust AI to Make Decisions with Marinela Profi

    Can organizations trust AI to make decisions? What Should AI Never Decide? What happens when employees trust AI more than they trust their managers, colleagues, or even themselves? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Marinela Profi, Global AI & Generative AI Market Strategy Lead at SAS and Human & AI Trust expert, to explore what trust really means in the age of AI. Together, they discuss why using AI is very different from trusting it, how organizations should decide which decisions can be delegated to AI and which must remain human, and why governance, accountability, and decision intelligence will become essential capabilities for every business. Marinela shares why curiosity and continuous learning may become the most important career skills, why AI performance should be managed alongside human performance, and how organizations can build trust without losing the uniquely human judgment that drives innovation. They also explore one of the most surprising shifts emerging today: people are increasingly turning to AI before they turn to colleagues, managers, or even themselves. What does that mean for leadership, learning, communication, and the future of human relationships at work? Whether you're leading AI transformation, designing AI governance, managing hybrid human-AI teams, or simply wondering what should never be delegated to artificial intelligence, this conversation offers a thoughtful perspective on how organizations can build trust while keeping people at the center of decision-making. https://youtu.be/nuCiiwl-k3k Guest Information: Marinela Profi is an AI strategist, TEDx speaker, and Human & AI Trust Expert focused on the future of work and the evolving relationship between humans and intelligent systems. She currently leads global market strategy for agentic AI at SAS, where she works at the intersection of technology, trust, and business transformation. With roots in data science and a passion for helping people navigate change, Marinela brings a human-centered perspective to how AI is redefining jobs, leadership, and opportunity.    Links: Website: marinelaprofi.com  Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marinelaprofi/ Instagram: marinelaprofi Chapters: 00:00 Can Organizations Trust AI to Make Decisions?01:20 What’s the Difference Between Using AI and Trusting AI?02:32 Why Are People Trusting AI More Than Humans?06:08 What Human Capabilities Could AI Replace Without Us Realizing?09:24 How Do We Develop Human Skills in the Age of AI?13:54 What Is Decision Intelligence and Why Does It Matter?15:34 Which Decisions Should Humans Never Delegate to AI?19:21 When Should Companies Use AI Agents vs Traditional Automation?22:18 How Do You Measure the Performance of AI Agents?25:11 What Work Should Always Remain Human?29:25 What Will Organizational Trust Look Like in Five Years?30:03 How Will AI Change HR, Leadership and Employee Trust?

    Can You Trust AI to Make Decisions with Marinela Profi

  6. Aug 25

    How Do You Build a Workforce Around Capabilities with Lara Vandenberg

    How to use freelance talent in enterprise companies? How Do You Manage Employees, Freelancers and AI Together? What Happens to Careers When Work Becomes Fractional? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Lara Vandenberg, Founder and CEO of Assemble, to explore how marketing teams are combining employees, freelancers, agencies and AI around changing business needs. They discuss why freelance talent is becoming a strategic capability, which roles companies are keeping inside, why senior creative judgment is gaining value, and how organizations are building trusted external talent benches instead of relying on one-off hires. The conversation also raises a harder question: if more experienced work moves outside the organization, where will future talent gain the experience, relationships and judgment needed to grow? https://youtu.be/YCY9NqYchWo Guest Information: Lara Vandenberg is the Founder & CEO of Assemble, a managed workforce platform that has placed 50,000+ senior freelance marketers inside Fortune 500 organisations like Delta, MassMutual and Colgate. The best leaders she works with are starting to think less like executives and more like casting directors. Figuring out the right mix of permanent staff, freelancers and agentic AI for every brief, every quarter, every objective. By 2027 freelancers are projected to outnumber full-time employees in the US for the first time. Most organisations aren't built for that yet. Lara has the live platform data and the CMO/CEO conversations to show exactly what that transition looks like on the ground. Chapters: 00:00 How AI Turns Jobs Into Fractional Work01:40 How Do You Build a Workforce Around Capabilities?03:15 Why Are Companies Moving Beyond Traditional Headcount?06:00 Why Freelance Talent Is Becoming a Strategic Workforce Model08:49 Is Fractional Talent Really About Cost Savings?10:07 Which Marketing Skills Are Companies Hiring Now?11:39 Why AI Hasn’t Replaced Copywriters13:49 Which Capabilities Should Companies Keep In-House?14:45 Why Enterprise Freelancers Are Becoming Easier to Hire18:25 How Do You Integrate Freelancers Into the Organization?21:01 What Happens to Career Development in a Fractional Workforce?22:05 Where Will Future Experts Gain Experience?26:03 Why More Professionals Will Become a Business of One27:52 How Worker Protections Need to Change28:38 What Does the Future of Work Really Look Like?

    How Do You Build a Workforce Around Capabilities with Lara Vandenberg

  7. Aug 19

    How AI Is Changing Software Engineering Jobs with Mo Bhende

    When AI can write code, what makes a software engineer great? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Mo Bhende, co-founder and CEO of Karat, to explore how AI is reshaping software engineering, technical hiring and the future of engineering talent. Together, they discuss why AI is not eliminating the need for engineers, but moving engineering work closer to real business problems. Mo explains why strong engineers may become even more valuable in the AI era, why companies need to rethink technical interviews, and how entry-level engineering jobs can be rebuilt around AI fluency, judgment and domain expertise. Whether you’re hiring technical talent, leading AI transformation or starting a software engineering career, this conversation offers a practical look at what changes when AI becomes part of the engineering team. https://youtu.be/vKg3EPvuqP8 Guest Information: Mo Bhende is the co-founder and CEO of Karat. Karat is the trusted standard for talent evaluation and improvement that helps leaders build more capable and competitive workforces in the Human + AI era. Before Karat, Mo held leadership roles at Microsoft, leading global strategy for Xbox and overseeing the company's China fund. He holds an MBA from Wharton, an MPhil from the University of Cambridge, and a BS with Honors from Penn State. Mo resides with his family in Seattle.   Links: Karat’s 2025-2026 Workforce Transformation Report: https://connect.karat.com/hubfs/2025-2026-AI-Workforce-Transformation-Report.pdf Chapters: 00:00 What Makes a Great Software Engineer When AI Can Code?01:25 Will AI Replace Software Engineers?02:49 Why Engineering Jobs Are Moving Beyond Big Tech04:30 What Is the Future of Entry-Level Software Engineering?06:50 Why Software Engineering Is More Than Writing Code09:10 Why Strong Engineers Become More Valuable With AI11:45 How Companies Should Measure Engineering Value14:45 How AI Is Changing Technical Interviews17:04 What Skills Define the Engineer of the Future?19:02 Why Engineering Managers Need to Become Builders20:53 How New Software Engineers Can Build AI-Era Careers23:53 Why Future Engineers Need More Than Computer Science25:48 What Will Software Engineering Look Like in the Future?28:44 How Should Companies Compensate AI-Era Talent?

    How AI Is Changing Software Engineering Jobs with Mo Bhende

  8. Aug 11

    How AI Will Change Competitive Advantage with Doug Stephens

    What Will Customers Pay for When Everyone Has AI?  What Happens When Consumers Use AI to Make Buying Decisions? In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with retail futurist Doug Stephens, founder of Retail Prophet and author of The Future of Competitive Advantage, to explore how AI is changing business, retail, consumer behavior, and the value of human work. Together, they discuss why AI will quickly become table stakes, why creativity and critical thinking will become essential sources of competitive advantage, and why companies that replace people without understanding their unique contribution may lose what makes them different. Doug explains how AI-powered consumers and shopping agents could transform advertising, purchasing decisions, brand transparency, and the relationship between companies and customers. They also explore what happens to retail jobs when information becomes a commodity, why customers may increasingly pay for human experience rather than product knowledge, and why trust and fairness will determine whether employees support or undermine AI transformation. Whether you are leading AI strategy, rethinking customer experience, redesigning retail work, or asking what humans contribute when intelligence becomes abundant, this conversation offers a new way to understand competitive advantage in the age of AI. https://youtu.be/OB4k915AXKY Guest Information: Doug Stephens is a globally recognized futurist, keynote speaker, and advisor to major international brands. His work explores how technology, demographics, and cultural shifts are reshaping consumer behavior and business strategy. He is the author of several influential books on the future of retail and commerce including Resurrecting Retail, Reengineering Retail and The Retail Revival. https://www.retailprophet.com/ Author of The Future of Competitive Advantage: A Business Plan to Save Your Customers, Your Company, and Democracy   LINK: https://www.retailprophet.com/books/   Chapters: 00:00 What Makes Companies Different When Everyone Has AI?01:35 Where Does Competitive Advantage Come From in the AI Era?05:12 Will AI Replace Knowledge Workers?08:20 Why Critical Thinking and Creativity Matter More With AI?11:07 How Human Creativity Becomes a Competitive Advantage?13:25 Why Trust Matters for Successful AI Transformation?17:19 Who Gets the Productivity Gains From AI?19:54 Can AI Agents Replace Human Expertise?22:18 What Happens When Consumers Have AI Too?22:58 How AI Will Change Advertising and Consumer Choice?25:17 Will AI Shopping Agents Replace Traditional Advertising?28:03 How AI Will Change Brand Trust and Transparency?29:45 Which Jobs Are Most Vulnerable to AI?31:19 What Will Customers Still Pay Humans For?32:09 Why Human Experience Becomes More Valuable in Retail?34:55 What Should Business Leaders Ask About the Future of Work?37:31 How Trust and Fairness Can Become Competitive Advantage?

    How AI Will Change Competitive Advantage with Doug Stephens
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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
    102
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Nirit Cohen
  • Show Website
    The Future Of Less Work