The Future of Work is One Big {Ongoing} Experiment in Embracing Change

Work as we know it has been changing for some time, and the rate at which things change is only accelerating. The most significant change in the past decade has been the COVID-19 pandemic, which, among other things, created a global experiment in how work gets done.

Three years later, the enterprise leaders have used this time to figure out ways to create happier, more productive workplaces, and those who have done their best have changed in small and large ways.

In a recent interview in the Wall Street Journal with author Adam Grant, professor of organizational psychology at Wharton and author of “Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know,” what organizations are missing when they plan for the “Future of Work” discussions?

Grant said it best when he stated, "one of my biggest fears when I think about the future of work is that the experimentation is going to stop.”

The winners have embraced the concept of “test and learn” to breed trust, teamwork, and a willingness to find new solutions, be they around hybrid work, new ways of attracting and retaining top talent, or even a change in business models.

Others are a case study in what not to do – over-hiring followed by layoffs, enforcing strict “return to work” policies only to roll them back weeks or months later, or missing the mark on critical changes in work that result in higher than average workforce turnover.

We tend to hear a lot about those organizations that have done things wrong, and a key theme amongst those who have failed is their unwillingness to embrace change.

Is there a straightforward solution to create the ideal future of work? No. The future of work has no end – no one theme or tactic that will suddenly “fix” everything and achieve a perfect way of working. The central tenet is to listen and embrace change. ?

Organizations that have done their best to date have found flexibility, a key component of change, motivating and using it to stretch, encouraging their organizations to embrace collaboration, see commonality instead of differences, and work together to achieve often faster goals changing and broader than ever before. An old-school mentality saw flexibility as a negative— an opportunity for workers to do less when given more. Instead, experimentations that take flexibility to the extreme, like the UK’s recent four-day workweek program, have broadly found increased productivity, morale, and profit.

This is also where the concept of “test and learn” breeds trust, teamwork, and willingness to find new solutions without fearing failures or mistakes.

Through this mindset, organizations survive, thrive, and make more progress because they give their employees “permission” to experiment AND learn from those experiments.

Will your organization move to a remote workforce, a four-day workweek, or one where independents work seamlessly alongside full-time employees? Maybe yes, maybe no. But you certainly won’t get anywhere without taking a first step.

How is your organization adapting to the future of work? We’d love to hear some real stories of organizations that have not been afraid to experiment and how those experiments have gone. Drop us an email or leave a comment – we’d love to feature you in an upcoming issue on changemakers.

Trending Topics:

●?????According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) forecast, many organizations will likely spend almost USD 1 billion on the Future of Work (FoW) in 2023 to invest in technologies and services that will enable more agile working methods.

●?????With current changes in the work landscape as well as trends like rage applying and quiet quitting, a Future of Work (FoW) expert says it’s vital that employers treat their workers with trust and respect. Doing so will keep employees loyal and engaged in their workplaces.

●?????While artificial intelligence (AI) and other automation technologies have progressed recently, that doesn’t mean they’re eliminating or taking over people’s jobs. These new technologies are simply changing work, ushering in a fleet of workers behind screens and machines.

●?????According to IBM’s recent study, 35% of companies actively use artificial intelligence (AI) in their day-to-day operations, and 42% are still exploring it. This helps reduce training time for new employees and makes work more efficient. However, success still depends on how managers integrate technology into their work.

●?????Based on an article released by Bloomberg, the largest-ever trial of the 4-day work week found that most participating companies are not returning to the 5-day work standard. About 1 in 6 employees in the study said no amount of money would convince them to go back to working five days a week.

Today’s issue was guest authored by MBO Chief Operating Officer Audra Nichols .