The Future of Work.
Next week (Feb 4) my second book Rethinking Work on which I have worked for two years will be published by HarperCollins in the US and India and then the rest of the world very soon after. It will be available as a hardcover, an ebook that can be read on any platform on any device, an audio book and on Kindle.
If you order it today you will have it on Feb 4. Here are all the places to order from including Amazon, Walmart, Barnes and Noble, Target, Independent Book Stores and more. For those ordering in India here is the link
The photograph above with me and stacks of the book before publication date is because HarperCollins shipped them early to a Wine Industry Conference in Monterey California that I was speaking at . HarperCollins has also agreed to ship books for events at American Express in New York, Bain Capital and their Portfolio CEO’s in Boston, the IAB Annual Leadership Meeting in Palm Springs and Nielsen’s leadership conference in Georgia all occurring this coming week before book launch.
I am now a traveling salesman!
Rethinking Work illustrates how every individual whether one is a CEO, a team leader, a middle manager or a new employee of any type and size of company in any country or industry can thrive during a period where work will transform more than it has in five decades!
If you find the writing in this thought letter worth your time, you might find the book a great resource, a tool, and a guide filled with new ideas, approaches, frameworks as well as perspectives, provocations , points of view and most importantly plans of action.
And like my first book each chapter is a book of its own versus the same chapter repeated a dozen times. There are chapters on developing reimagining strategies, recalculating financials, retraining the work force and how best machines and humans can align and what it will take to lead in the new era.
The book is likely to change not just how you think about your work and career but every aspect of your firm from strategy, to financial measurement, to talent development and organizational structure.
The book will be supported by a multi-media site, a You-Tube channel, a series of workshops, many other resources and partner as the Rethinking Work platform. You can already watch videos, listen to conversations and access research in the first baby step iteration of the platform here.
Below is a 90 second overview of the book followed by some perspectives on how work and industry will change in the next five years or less.
Some thoughts on the Future of Work.
1. Most companies will have significantly fewer full time employees than they have now because of in addition to AI, companies will leverage marketplaces and the growth of fractional employment.
2. There will be far more companies in the future. This year there will be a record 6 million new firms launched in the US alone and this is likely to grow exponentially as a combination of distributed work, new technology, market places and side hustles, low code and no code solutions make it easier than ever to create and scale new firms.
3. The least important challenge in the future of work is where one works. Companies who are focussed on getting everybody back to the office are asking the wrong question. The question should be how to maximize the impact of in person interaction in ways that are personalized and customized to Client needs, type of job, seniority, personal situation and market place dynamics for any particular expertise.
How can a company talk about personalization, agility, flexibility, cost competitiveness and being future forward and then enforce a one size for all model that insists everybody return to a container of the past and be expected to be taken seriously as a company of tomorrow and hope to compete with new competitors starting today that start with a blank sheet of paper that reflect new mindsets, new marketplaces and new technology?
4. We have entered an age of de-bossification as people are rejecting “boss- like” behavior and are looking for leaders. Bosses spend almost all their time measuring, monitoring, overseeing, allocating, nitpicking and “checking-in” while Leaders spend most of their time creating, selling, guiding, building, mentoring and growing.
The modern leader will not be just full stack but wide spectrum.
They will focus not on zone of control but zone of influence.
They will combine a growth mindset, an ability to connect dots in creative ways, and communicate and inspire with data driven story telling.
The crisis that many companies face is that of leadership. Of moving forward and reimagining what it is to lead a company, understanding what a company of the future is and reimagining one’s career versus returning to the status quo.
5. Three criteria will be key to the the future of work both for the individual and company.
a) Investments in learning and training across all levels.
b) The ability to connect people, data, interfaces and opportunities inside and outside the firm in flexible and cost effective ways. We are living in a connected age and connection is the key.
c) Trust and distinctiveness. Trust will be critical in a world of algorithms, agents, and AI for companies, for brands and individuals. Distinctiveness which can be defined as differentiation through excellence in key criteria that matter will will be a key to compete.
6. The individuals and companies that will win in the future will rethink the strategy of their firm for a world of a) declining and aging populations, b) shifts of power from scale of size, resources and spending to that of data, networks and talent, c) for a world where knowledge will be free ( but not wisdom, insights and ideas) , and d) where the ability to charge for hours of input and FTE’s (Full Time Equivalents) will be destroyed by Generative, Agentic and Physical AI.
Everything and more about the book at Rethinkingwork.io
Video by Ria Tobaccowala
Photograph by Rekha Tobaccowala