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

Each week in October, I will share three of my top picks for articles on the future of work, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and humanizing work. 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.

SINGULARITY HUB: Scientists Created Holograms You Can Touch – You Could Soon Shake a Virtual Colleague’s Hand

This is next-level stuff for remote and hybrid work. According to the article, scientists at the University of Glasgow are developing “a system of holograms of people using aerohaptics” to create feelings of touch with jets of air. The jets of air will simulate an actual handshake. So, imagine your avatar and that of a colleague located somewhere else on the planet meeting and shaking hands, and it feels like you are actually shaking hands in person. This article made the list not just because the technology is incredible but because it represents a humanized approach to building collaboration and the “human connection” that workers will need as artificial intelligence drives transformation, the future of work rapidly unfolds and becomes more virtual.   

CNBC At Work: Companies are Betting on New Tech to Make the Re-opening of Offices Safe

Are they concerned about returning to work and sharing an elevator ride? Elevator manufacturer Otis can solve for that. According to the article, Otis is providing solutions for safely” moving people around buildings”. They are deploying air purifiers inside elevator cabs for safe ventilation and developed an app riders can use to call elevators and avoid touching elevator buttons. Let me be completely transparent, this article made the list because I ride elevators in corporate buildings and on college campuses’ several times a week and think about solving for these issues in the context of worker safety and experience. The article also discussed return to office challenges. To help executives develop return to office strategies, a San Francisco startup developed a solution for social distancing and crowd control in buildings. The company uses sensors to detect human movement using lasers to generate 3D images of people in entryways and other congested areas. The “data is anonymized” and can provide critical insights needed for return to office and employee experience strategies. 

Entrepreneur.com: Why Servant Leadership is Becoming the Leadership Style of the Future 

The future of work is human. Servant leadership lies at the heart of humanizing worker experience. This article made my top three list because servant leadership is pivotal to humanizing the workplace and worker experience. As organizations grapple with the impact of the Great Resignation, the big reset, and workers look to reimagine experiences, personal brands, and careers, servant leadership can be the hedge for engagement and retention. According to the article, organizations that win the future leverage empathetic leaders focused on the “holistic well-being and growth of everyone”. 

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!