The New Rulebook For The Digital Millennium

Driven by the acceleration of connectivity and cognitive technology, the nature of work is changing. As AI systems, robotics, and cognitive tools grow in sophistication, almost every job is being reinvented, creating what many call the “augmented workforce.”

The question of how each job will change, adapt, or disappear has become a design decision. Herein comes the vital role of HR leaders. They should focus on defining the difference between essential human skills, such as creative and ethical thinking, and nonessential tasks, which can be managed by machines. This requires reframing careers, and designing new ways of working and new ways of learning—both in organizations and as individuals.

As organizations become more ‘digital’, they face a growing imperative to redesign themselves to move faster, adapt more quickly, facilitate rapid learning, and embrace the dynamic career demands of their people.

Leading organizations will offer dynamic developmental opportunities for employees to build their careers, while companies that continue to operate in the old manner will likely struggle to keep up. In this new world, more nimble organizations will have certain advantages, but successful large organizations will keep pace by building stronger ecosystems and partnerships that broaden their workforces and capabilities.

Employees want more regular feedback. Informed by their experiences in social media, people want to get and give feedback regularly. Cisco’s new performance management process dramatically improved communications and feedback, enabling managers to touch base with employees on a continuous basis using new tools and check-ins that take very little time.

In today’s transparent digital world, a company’s employment brand must be both highly visible and highly attractive because candidates now often find the employer, not the reverse. To leverage this interest, companies are intensively managing their employment brand, which can “pull” candidates toward them.

The more innovative ideas and solutions are centered around cognitive technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine-to-machine learning, robotic process automation, natural language processing, predictive algorithms, and self-learning. Chatbots are becoming popular, including the recently launched Olivia, which guides candidates through an application process with sequenced questions.

​Today, many organizations need a completely different kind of leader, a "digital leader" who can build teams, keep people connected and engaged, and drive a culture of innovation, risk tolerance, and continuous improvement. Risk-taking has become one of the most important drivers of a high-performing leadership culture.

The most critical need for most organizations is for leaders to develop digital capabilities. Leadership is critical in making the transformation from an organization “doing” digital things to one that is “becoming” digital.

Great leaders have always been expected to succeed in the context of ambiguity. The role that leaders play will continue to change, becoming even more digital-focused and team-centric. A focus on organizational practice, including culture and organizational design, will become an ever-more important part of leadership development. Despite this leaders will be asked to execute at a higher level—and ensure that their organizations do not lag behind in the digital transformation.