{"id":1945,"date":"2021-11-02T22:53:30","date_gmt":"2021-11-03T04:53:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/singularityumexicosummit.com\/?p=1945"},"modified":"2021-11-02T22:53:30","modified_gmt":"2021-11-03T04:53:30","slug":"a-human-centric-world-of-work-why-it-matters-and-how-to-build-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/singularityumexico.com\/en\/a-human-centric-world-of-work-why-it-matters-and-how-to-build-it\/","title":{"rendered":"A Human-Centric World of Work: Why It Matters, and How to Build It"},"content":{"rendered":"

Long before coronavirus appeared and shattered our pre-existing \u201cnormal,\u201d the future of work was a widely discussed and debated topic. We\u2019ve watched automation<\/a> slowly but surely expand its capabilities and take over more jobs<\/a>, and we\u2019ve wondered what artificial intelligence will eventually be capable of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pandemic swiftly turned the working world on its head, putting millions of people out of a job and forcing millions more to work remotely. But essential questions remain largely unchanged: we still want to make sure we\u2019re not replaced, we want to add value, and we want an equitable society where different types of work are valued fairly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To address these issues\u2014as well as how the pandemic has impacted them\u2014this week Singularity University held a digital summit on the future of work<\/a>. Forty-three speakers from multiple backgrounds, countries, and sectors of the economy shared their expertise on everything from work in developing markets to why we shouldn\u2019t want to go back to the old normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gary Bolles, SU\u2019s chair for the Future of Work, kicked off the discussion with his thoughts on a future of work that\u2019s human-centric, including why it matters and how to build it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is<\/em> Work?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWork\u201d seems like a straightforward concept to define, but since it\u2019s constantly shifting shape over time, let\u2019s make sure we\u2019re on the same page. Bolles defined work, very basically, as human skills applied to problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter if it\u2019s a dirty floor or a complex market entry strategy or a major challenge in the world,\u201d he said. \u201cWe as humans create value by applying our skills to solve problems in the world.\u201d You can think of the problems that need solving as the demand and human skills as the supply, and the two are in constant oscillation, including, every few decades or centuries, a massive shift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re in the midst of one of those shifts right now (and we already were, long before the pandemic). Skills that have long been in demand are declining. The World Economic Forum\u2019s 2018 Future of Jobs report<\/a> listed things like manual dexterity, management of financial and material resources, and quality control and safety awareness as declining skills. Meanwhile, skills the next generation will need include analytical thinking and innovation, emotional intelligence, creativity, and systems analysis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along Came a Pandemic<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

With the outbreak of coronavirus and its spread around the world, the demand side of work shrunk; all the problems that needed solving gave way to the much bigger, more immediate problem of keeping people alive. But as a result, tens of millions of people around the world are out of work\u2014and those are just the ones that are being counted, and they\u2019re a fraction of the true total. There are additional millions in seasonal or gig jobs or who work in informal economies now without work, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is our opportunity to focus,\u201d Bolles said. \u201cHow do we help people re-engage with work? And make it better work, a better economy, and a better set of design heuristics for a world that we all want?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bolles posed five key questions\u2014some spurred by impact of the pandemic\u2014on which future of work conversations should focus to make sure it\u2019s a human-centric future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. What does an inclusive world of work look like?<\/strong> Rather than seeing our current systems of work as immutable, we need to actually understand those systems and how we want to change them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. How can we increase the value of human work?<\/strong> We know that robots and software are going to be fine in the future\u2014but for humans to be fine, we need to design for that very intentionally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. How can entrepreneurship help create a better world of work?<\/strong> In many economies the new value that\u2019s created often comes from younger companies; how do we nurture entrepreneurship?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. What will the intersection of workplace and geography look like?<\/strong> A large percentage of the global workforce is now working from home; what could some of the outcomes of that be? How does gig work fit in?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. How can we ensure a healthy evolution of work and life?<\/strong> The health and the protection of those at risk is why we shut down our economies, but we need to find a balance that allows people to work while keeping them safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Problem-Solving Doesn\u2019t End<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The end result these questions are driving towards, and our overarching goal, is maximizing human potential. \u201cIf we come up with ways we can continue to do that, we\u2019ll have a much more beneficial future of work,\u201d Bolles said. \u201cWe should all be talking about where we can have an impact.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One small silver lining? We had plenty of problems to solve in the world before ever hearing about coronavirus, and now we have even more. Is the pace of automation accelerating due to the virus<\/a>? Yes. Are companies finding more ways to automate their processes in order to keep people from getting sick? They are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But we have a slew of new problems on our hands, and we\u2019re not going to stop needing human skills to solve them (not to mention the new problems that will surely emerge as second- and third-order effects of the shutdowns). If Bolles\u2019 definition of work holds up, we\u2019ve got ours cut out for us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an article from April titled\u00a0The Great Reset<\/a><\/em>, Bolles outlined three phases of the unemployment slump (we\u2019re currently still in the first phase) and what we should be doing to minimize the damage. \u201cThe evolution of work is not about what will happen 10 to 20 years from now,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s about what we could be doing differently today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Watch Bolles\u2019 talk and those of dozens of other experts for more insights into building a human-centric future of work\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Image Credit:\u00a0www_slon_pics<\/a>\u00a0from\u00a0Pixabay<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vanessa is senior editor of Singularity Hub. She’s interested in renewable energy, health and medicine, international development, and countless other topics. When she’s not reading or writing you can usually find her outdoors, in water, or on a plane. Learn More<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Original Article<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Long before coronavirus appeared and shattered our pre-existing \u201cnormal,\u201d the future of work was a widely discussed and debated topic. We\u2019ve watched automation slowly but surely expand its capabilities and take over more jobs, and we\u2019ve wondered what artificial intelligence will eventually be capable of. The pandemic swiftly turned the working world on its head, putting millions of […]\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1946,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[43,44],"series":[],"class_list":["post-1945","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articulos-ingles","tag-future-of-work","tag-futuro-del-trabajo"],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/singularityumexico.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/lego-office-worker-despaired-1068x601-1.jpg","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/singularityumexico.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11711533-1673157178559-89a95be153719-4-scaled.jpg","download_link":"","player_link":"","audio_player":false,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"stitcher":{"key":"stitcher","url":"","label":"Stitcher","class":"stitcher","icon":"stitcher.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/singularityumexico.com\/en\/feed\/podcast\/the-feedback-loop-by-singularity","embedCode":"

A Human-Centric World of Work: Why It Matters, and How to Build It<\/a><\/blockquote>