Future Workforce: Reworking the Revolution

FUTURE WORKFORCE

In the age of artificial intelligence (AI), business success will increasingly depend on people and machines collaborating with each other. AI will elevate people’s capabilities as workers help intelligent machines to learn and improve. This will not only drive efficiencies, but create new forms of growth and innovation. To succeed, organizations must reimagine work, pivot their workforce to new growth models and ‘new skill’ their people to do more valuable work.

KEY FINDINGS

While businesses are successfully using Al to improve efficiencies, many are struggling to use it to drive growth. The ability to create new customer experiences lies at the intersection of humans and intelligent machines. Our economic modelling and extensive research of more than 1,200 business leaders and 14,000 workers shows that there's an urgency to act.

Al investment will boost revenues, profits and employment

If companies were to invest in AI and Human-Machine Collaboration at the same level as the top performing fifth of companies, they could boost revenues by 38 percent and lift employment levels by 10 percent between 2018 and 2022. That equates to an average of US$7.5 billion and 5000 jobs for an S&P500 company in that time.

Revenue and employment boost by industry

Businesses recognize that value creation lies at the
intersection of humans and intelligent machines

of business leaders expect the share of roles requiring collaboration with Al to increase in the next three years.

say that human-machine collaboration is important to achieving their strategic priorities.

say that traditional job descriptions have become obsolete.

Workers are impatient
to work with AI

It will be important to learn new skills to work with AI in the next 3-5 years.

AI will help me do my job more efficiently.

I am very confident in my skills to work with AI.

Their employers underestimate their willingness

of executives say they intend to increase investment in training and reskilling programs significantly in the next three years.

There is a rare opportunity to reconfigure work and invest in skills to work with Al

of people think Al will have a positive impact on their work.

of business leaders believe Al will result in net job gains for their organization in the next three years.

of businesses have already redesigned job roles extensively.

NEXT STEPS

Business leaders should consider the following steps to create a future workforce in which humans and intelligent machines work together to improve productivity, innovation and growth:

Assess tasks — not jobs. Allocate work to machines and people, balancing the need for automation and augmentation.
Create new job roles. Free people from function roles and build agile, project-based teams.
Map skills to new roles. Assess internal capabilities required for new roles. Then match to existing skills or source new talent.

Pivot the workforce to new business models. Orientate teams to support new customer experiences.
Recognize the business case. Use automation to fuel growth by reinvesting savings in the future workforce.
Organize for agility. Create flexible processes; manage the workforce to support both the core business and the new.
Foster a new leadership DNA. Cultivate leaders at all levels to help pivot the workforce to new growth models.

Prioritize skills for development. Strike the balance between technical, judgment, and social skills.
Target ‘new skilling.’ Cater to different levels of skills and willingness to learn.
Go digital. Use VR, AR and Al to accelerate the speed and scale of effective training.