On November 30, 2022, OpenAI launched the latest version of ChatGPT. In just a matter of days, the chatbot captivated the attention of over a hundred million users who tested its capabilities. The chatbot quickly went viral on social media as users shared examples of what it could do. Stories and samples included everything from travel planning to coding software programs.

Technology is really transforming the world of work. And that means companies must learn how to do things differently than what they’ve done over 50 or a hundred-year history. Over the last three years, we have been shaped by a challenging combination of health, economic and geopolitical volatility, growing social pressures, and environmental concerns.

These rapid transformations have reshaped the world’s labor markets and changed the demand for skills and job opportunities.

According to the Future of Jobs Report 2023, over 85% of organizations surveyed identified increased adoption of new and frontier technologies and broadening digital access as the trends most likely to drive transformation in their organization. Some key findings are:

The impact of most technologies on jobs is expected to be a net positive over the next five years.
Employers estimate that 44% of workers’ skills will be disrupted in the next five years. Cognitive skills are reported to grow in importance most quickly, reflecting the increasing importance of complex problem-solving in the workplace.
Six in ten workers will require training before 2027, but only half of the workers are seen to have access to adequate training opportunities today.
Analytical thinking and creative thinking remain the most important skills for workers in 2023.

This transformation also means that companies must transform the skill base in how they’re approaching employees and talent.

One of the approaches that most companies will appeal to is to put the company's purpose in front of employees. When employees find purpose, learn and grow, and feel valued and respected, the organization can reinvent strategy, respond to customer needs, improve customer service, increase investor confidence, and build community reputation.

When we talk about the future of work and employee experience, we have to put in front that people matter. Caring for people in organizations is a timeless principle. Beyond employer practices, my sense is that this may come from more personalization than generic solutions. Personalization helps individuals find their personal pathway from their work setting. When it comes to designing the future of work, one size fits none.

According to Dave Ulrich, in organizations, personalization is about caring for the person through leadership emotion, empathy, engagement, and efficacy. These E words show up with increased attention on affinity in relationships. Personalization at work also refers to creating more customized work experiences through turning workplace flexibility practices (benefits, hours worked, locations, workweek, sabbaticals, job sharing) into personal choices tailored to the needs of each employee.

Individuals and organizations are looking for more freedom. The freedom to choose the work model that makes the most sense. The freedom to choose their own values. And the freedom to pursue what matters most.

The future of work is a big challenge. We have to get in front of that. But most companies haven’t necessarily figured it all out yet.

However, one of the big initiatives that some companies have undertaken is how to help people create more flexibility in their roles, so they can discover new ways of working, explore new skills, and grow.

The biggest challenge of the new future-forward workplace is to build a culture and process that embraces work flexibility alongside productivity. It will require operational agility, flexible processes, and technology adoption — and a willingness for organizational leaders to see change as an opportunity to innovate, grow and lead.