This Week's Top 3 Must Reads on the Future of Work

Here are my top three article picks for this week on the future of work, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and humanizing work. This week’s selection includes insights on the metaverse and hybrid work, Gen Z, and organizational citizenship. I hope the articles inspire and ignite your imagination about the future of work and provide insights and strategies that you can leverage to thrive and make work more human.

Metaverse cheat sheet: Everything you need to know

Heard of the metaverse but not sure of what it is or how to describe it? Well, this article made this week’s list because it explains it all. More importantly, it describes how the metaverse can play a pivotal role in developing hybrid work strategies as the future of work continues to unfold. Let’s start with a simple definition. While in the early stages of development, the metaverse is a 3D virtual world of digital spaces powered by virtual or augmented reality where personal avatars can interact with one another. The article describes the metaverse of the future as a “vision for a new place to interact with other humans and bots to play games, conduct business, socialize and shop.” Think internet 2.0 of the future.?This is such a growing space tied to the future of everything that Facebook is planning to hire 10,000 workers in Europe to build the metaverse of the future over the next five years. So, what’s the connection between the metaverse and work??According to the article, Accenture has an “Nth floor, a virtual space that connects the company’s 500,000 employees and customers in virtual meeting rooms and event spaces”. Another company eXp Realty, a remote first company operates exclusively on a “cloud-based campus.” Yes, no physical headquarters at all! In the broader context of the unfolding of the future of work, moving forward, this blending of virtual and physical worlds can support hybrid work by not only replicating the office experience but also by reinforcing corporate values, developing a shared culture and in a unique way, humanizing virtual work experiences. The question is, will your organization be prepared to thrive in the metaverse of the future??

Gen Z job seekers are finding careers and building relationships in a whole new way

Let’s start with the statistics. By 2030 Gen Z will make up 30% of the U.S. workforce. This article made the list because it revealed Gen Z’s approach to building professional networks and launching their careers. A recent survey conducted by Handshake, a platform that connects students with employers, revealed that Gen Z focuses on leveraging their social capital to build digital connections, professional networks and to launch their careers in novel ways that differ dramatically from that of Gen X and Boomers. According to the article, the report revealed that “Gen Z regards the internet as the “path to social capital—a wealth of information, resources, and network potential, facilitating access to a richer job pool and catalyzing broader professional networks than their parents.” Several other statistics stood out as well. Sixty-seven percent believe you do not have to meet in person to make a professional connection.?Eighty percent of Gen Z job seekers believe that digital connections are the pathway to job opportunities. Also, survey respondents of color were nearly twice as likely to believe that launching a career today is much easier than previous generations. Well, if we talk about building relationships in a whole new way, how about the fact that nearly all respondents, yes, 90%, were willing to help another young person with college or career advice. Talk about demonstrating empathy! In my view, although Gen Z will only represent 30% of the workforce in 2030, they will have a significant impact on making work in digital and virtual spaces more human!

How Employees Can Become Better Organizational Citizens

The future of work is about purpose, intention and impact for both organizations and people. Purpose, intention, and impact make work more human on so many levels. This article from Knowledge@Wharton resonated with me because it was centered on the construct of organizational citizenship. It was based on a study conducted on an organization in the food industry. The study noted that?“employees did their jobs well, but they didn’t seem to care much about taking care of each other. Workers were reluctant to call out unsafe practices when they witnessed them and rarely offered a helping hand when it was needed.”?The article explained organizational citizenship “as a range of behaviors that promote the social environment of the workplace.” Simply put, these behaviors enhance organizational culture and ultimately benefit performance and profitability. The behaviors include of course, collaboration and teamwork, but also things like volunteering to help, showing up on time, and speaking up. What was interesting to me about this article was that it discussed how more organizations are including these types of behaviors as part of their shared values, incentivizing the behavior and measuring impact through the lens of cultural transformation. The key takeaway from the study was that?“creating, communicating, and implementing behavioral interventions” and measuring the impact was the most effective way to both drive and sustain the behaviors that underpin the highest forms of organizational citizenship. Since the future of work is human, why not capitalize on the power of human potential and develop people strategies that enable your workforce to become better organizational citizens?

Be resilient, be relevant, be bold and let's thrive in the future of work together! Want more insights? Click on my logo below and sign up for my newsletter. Want to learn more about training to prepare your leaders for the future of work? Click on my logo below and schedule a complimemary 30-minute consultation. Have you purchased your copy of my new book titled,?Force Majeure: A Futurist's Guide to Boldly Thriving on Your Terms in the Future of Work??If not, grab it today, it too, is a must read!