Santhosh Vijayabaskar, Director at Fidelity Investments, drives digital transformation via Intelligent automation & RPA.
As the job market and our workplace rapidly evolve, driven by technological advancement, employees are challenged significantly by a shift in roles and responsibilities.
Consider this example: Sarah is a project coordinator at a medium-sized marketing agency who used to spend hours every week gathering information, updating deadlines and answering the same questions from three clients over Slack on five different days. This was a grind that left Sarah unable to think creatively or strategically.
After the firm introduced both intelligent automation (IA) and robotic process automation (RPA), Sarah’s job changed significantly. She also leveraged AI digital workers to complete more mundane tasks, freeing her time for innovation and creating better marketing campaigns. AI tools helped shift Sarah from a project coordinator at her company to a marketing manager and influence the business’s direction.
These changes are becoming the new reality in an emerging and changing era of work. I would like to highlight a few key trends that shape our future of work, transform how we collaborate and innovate, and revolutionize our everyday workplace experience.
Intelligent automation, hyper-automation, AI-powered collaborative robots (cobots), process intelligence and conversational AI are no longer just industry buzzwords. They reflect a huge change in how roles evolve for workers across different areas. We need to lean into these innovations—and rethink how we can make knowledge work actually work.
- Hyperautomation: This trend focuses on the combination of multiple automation technologies—RPA, AI and machine learning—to automate more complex business processes end to end. To enhance the capabilities of RPA, organizations have begun hyper-automation, which helps advance efficiency and agility for workers by enabling them to work on higher value-added activities that require insight from humans.
- AI-Powered Automation: AI largely optimizes how data is crunched and decision-making processes are made in organizations. This includes data-driven AI-powered automation, which can learn from patterns in the data to help systems adapt and get better with age. This shift enables more intelligent decision-making and highly personalized customer experiences, which can be deployed to increase operating efficacy further.
- Low-Code/No-Code Development: Intelligent automation and low-code/no-code development are democratizing automation by empowering non-technical users to create and implement solutions. This trend allows teams to design workflows and applications without requiring in-depth programming skills, fostering innovation and speeding up the development lifecycle.
- Conversational AI And Natural Language Processing (NLP): Conversational AI technologies, including chatbots and voice-activated assistants, are transforming communication within organizations. These tools streamline workflows and provide immediate responses, improving user experience and allowing associates to concentrate on more complex problem-solving tasks.
The Importance Of Embracing Change
Sarah’s hypothetical journey illustrates the transformative potential of these technologies in reshaping careers. However, embracing this shift requires more than simply adapting to new tools; it calls for a proactive mindset. As we prepare for a future where intelligent automation becomes the norm, workers must recognize the importance of continuous learning and adaptability.
Introducing The STEP Framework
To help each of us navigate this digital revolution effectively, I propose the STEP framework: Strategize, Transform, Educate and Perform. Each component within this framework serves as a guiding principle for workers looking to thrive in the future workplace.
- S—Strategize: Embrace AI tools and digital workers as partners. By collaborating with these technologies, you can enhance productivity while focusing on creative problem-solving.
- T—Transform: Organize Community of Practice groups within your programs, regularly assess your workload and identify processes where automation can drive efficiency. Build a backlog of process improvement and automation ideas that you can share with your intelligent automation developers.
- E—Educate: We need to prioritize continuous learning in emerging technologies. Organizations need to invest in training programs that enhance their skill sets, particularly in data analysis and AI applications, to stay relevant in a rapidly evolving work environment.
- P—Perform: Take ownership of your career path. Advocate for integrating automation tools in your workflow, demonstrating how these technologies can enhance your performance and contribute to organizational success.
Conclusion
The trends shaping the future of work present both challenges and opportunities for workers across industries. By adopting the STEP framework—Strategize, Transform, Educate and Perform—you can confidently navigate the digital landscape and ensure your relevance in the evolving workplace. As we look ahead, remember that the future of work is not solely defined by technology; it is also shaped by how we choose to engage with it.
You can change your role and positively contribute to the success of your organization. So let us prepare ourselves to be proactive about what comes next—and shape a future that is not only productive but also fulfilling.
