TFOW: AI & Inclusivity, Leadership Micro-coaching, Creativity & AI, Workplace Mental Health
The weekly newsletter of curated content from Peak Performer that explores the evolving landscape of work, leadership, and technology.
Welcome to The Future of Work, the weekly newsletter of curated content from Peak Performer that explores the evolving landscape of work, leadership, and technology. Each week, we dive into the critical topics shaping how we live and work in an era of rapid technological change. Whether you’re a manager striving to inspire your team, an industry leader navigating disruption, a graduate entering the workforce, or a worker adapting to new challenges, this newsletter is your go-to resource for news and insights to thrive in the future of work.
Shoshana Zuboff says that we are in the age of surveillance capitalism. "The digital realm is overtaking and redefining everything," she says. Technology is ubiquitous, and it serves us to approach it with eyes wide open. Where does our data go? Who can see it, and how is it used? Can we trust technology? Are the rules enough to ensure our interests are met? Should we trust the machine? More so, can we trust the people who have made this machine? Scepticism keeps us alive. It is the foundation of the scientific pursuit of answers to worldly problems. Therefore, we must be willing to question what others tell us and, indeed, what the data machine tells us. This question, or awareness of it, serves as an anchor in the stormy sea of technological change. Apart from anything else, it's simply good business sense.
This week’s Culture piece from HBR delves into how AI can enhance collaboration, allowing us to meet inclusivity requirements and workplace efficiency. The Leadership article from Forbes explores integrating micro-coaching with online learning platforms to transform leadership development. In Artificial Intelligence, the article examines the complex interplay between AI, intellectual property, and the creative industries. The Wellbeing section highlights the persistent challenges of addressing mental health in the workplace and the need for comprehensive strategies. Finally, the Work article discusses the resurgence of the traditional office environment and the evolving dynamics between leadership mandates and employee preferences.
The future of work isn’t a distant concept—it’s unfolding now. From cultural shifts to cutting-edge technologies and the evolving nature of leadership, this weekly publication aims to keep you informed and empowered to navigate these changes confidently.
Culture: Enhancing Meeting Inclusivity with AI
Digital transformation is about people rather than technology. So says Dr Gerald Kane, Author of The Technology Fallacy. Harvard Business Review reinforces this idea in a recent article by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic. He outlines strategies for integrating artificial intelligence into team workflows to boost efficiency and innovation. The author suggests that AI is a tool to augment, not replace, human capabilities, emphasising the synergy between AI's strengths and human creativity.
The article stresses the importance of AI literacy, encouraging organisations to provide training that helps employees understand AI's potential and limitations. Identifying tasks suitable for AI, such as automating data-heavy or routine processes, is also key. This allows team members to focus on complex, strategic work, enhancing productivity.
Ensuring data quality is another critical aspect. AI relies on high-quality data for accuracy, making robust data policies, planning and management essential. Ethical development, deployment and use of AI are paramount, as highlighted recently by the AI Act in the EU and similar actions globally. Organisations must establish guidelines to ensure AI is transparent, unbiased, and aligned with ethical standards, maintaining trust among all stakeholders.
Finally, the article emphasises fostering a culture of continuous learning. With AI technologies evolving rapidly, teams must collaborate and stay updated on developments and best practices. By addressing these areas, organisations can effectively integrate AI into their operations, allowing them to move quickly when circumstances require it.
Source: Harvard Business Review
Leadership: Transforming Leadership Development with Microcoaching
This week's Leadership article is from Forbes and examines integrating micro-coaching with online learning platforms to enhance leadership development. This combined approach aims to enrich the learning experience and optimize organizational investment in leadership training.
Decision-making cannot be left entirely to machines or, perhaps, at all. Technology can inform decision-making but should not replace the human being. This underscores the critical need for human-centred leadership. Yet, the article suggests, many organisations persist with outdated leadership development models that fail to adequately prepare leaders to succeed in this rapidly changing environment.
Microcoaching involves brief, focused coaching sessions that address specific challenges or skills, providing personalised guidance on performing the leadership role. When paired with online learning, it allows leaders to apply theoretical knowledge in practical scenarios, reinforcing learning outcomes.
The article suggests that this blended method can lead to more effective leadership development by offering tailored support and flexibility, catering to individual learning styles and schedules. After all, it's not simply about the information but how it is applied. This approach enhances skill acquisition and promotes continuous learning and adaptability among leaders.
By adopting a 5-star approach that combines micro-coaching with digital learning tools, organisations can foster a culture of ongoing development and ensure that leadership capabilities evolve in alignment with personal and organisational goals and the demanding business environment.
Artificial Intelligence: Navigating AI, Intellectual Property, and the Creative Industries
The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is hosting a hybrid event titled "Artificial Intelligence, Intellectual Property, and the Creative Industries." It is free and will take place on 4 March 2025. This event will explore the challenges that artificial intelligence (AI) technologies present within creative sectors such as film, theatre, music, and video games.
Key Discussion Points:
Generative AI and Intellectual Property (IP): The panel will examine legal issues arising from using generative AI models like ChatGPT and Stable Diffusion, which create text, art, and music. A central focus will be on how these models interact with existing IP laws, particularly concerning copyright and trademark infringements.
Image Rights of Performers: The discussion will extend to AI's implications for performers' image rights, exploring how AI-generated content may affect the control and use of a performer's likeness.
Legal Rights and Licensing Solutions: The event explores the legal rights of authors, performers, and users in the context of AI-generated works. It will also consider the feasibility of regional or global IP licensing solutions to address the complexities introduced by AI in creative processes.
Find out more: London School of Economics
Wellbeing: Workplace Mental Health Needs More Than a Quick Fix
Despite growing awareness and initiatives, the article highlights the persistent challenges in addressing mental health in professional environments. The World Health Organisation estimates 12 billion lost workdays and an annual $1 trillion impact on the global economy and emphasises the significant economic toll of untreated mental health issues.
A key focus is the need for organisations to move beyond surface-level solutions, advocating for a comprehensive approach that integrates mental health into workplace culture. Leaders are encouraged to actively listen to employees and show authentic concern for their well-being. Strategies such as conducting “stay interviews” help proactively address issues, while training programs equip teams to recognise and counteract workplace bullying, for example.
The article argues that fostering a supportive workplace environment goes beyond reactive measures and requires systemic change and commitment from leadership. By prioritising these efforts, organisations can improve employee mental health, reduce turnover, and enhance their people's overall performance.
For managers and industry leaders, this underscores the importance of creating a supportive culture that is human-centric rather than outcome-centric. By addressing systemic issues and promoting a healthy work-life/personal-life balance, organisations can enhance productivity and ensure a more resilient workforce
Work: The Office Comeback
An insightful article from Work Design Magazine examines the resurgence of the traditional office environment, highlighting the evolving dynamics between leadership mandates and employee preferences. Many organisations have required employees to return to physical offices post-pandemic, citing benefits such as enhanced innovation, improved communication, and stronger organisational engagement. However, these mandates have sparked debates, with some viewing them as indirect methods to reduce headcount without formal layoffs.
The author notes that Gen Z is at the forefront of this return-to-office movement. Having entered the workforce during the pandemic, many Gen Zers value in-person experiences for mentorship, networking, and career development opportunities that are less accessible in remote settings. This generational shift underscores a broader recognition of the unique advantages physical workplaces provide, which virtual environments may not fully replicate.
This trend emphasises the importance of creating office spaces that foster genuine connections and collaborative opportunities for managers and industry leaders. By understanding and addressing the diverse needs of their workforce, organisations can design environments that encourage voluntary return, thereby enhancing engagement and productivity. This approach aligns with the future of work, where flexibility and intentionality in workspace design are crucial for attracting and retaining talent.
“Intelligent machines with this capability would be able to look further into the future than humans can. They would also be able to take into account far more information. These two capabilities combined lead inevitably to better real-world decisions. In any kind of conflict situation between humans and machines, we would quickly find, like Garry Kasparov and Lee Sedol, that our every move has been anticipated and blocked. We would lose the game before it even started.”
― Stuart Russell, Human Compatible: AI and the Problem of Control
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