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If you’ve heard the constant drumbeat that AI is expected to “free people from the boring parts of their jobs” and wondered if it’s really happening, you might want to listen to these guys.
Forbes’ Rashi Shrivastava profiled conversational AI platform Moveworks, the $2.1 billion company making tens of millions in revenue by automating dull workplace tasks such as troubleshooting IT issues or submitting PTO requests. Moveworks is used by some 5 million employees at over 350 companies like Hearst, GitHub, Toyota and Salesforce, Shrivastava reports, while amassing more than $300 million in venture capital from high-profile backers like Lightspeed Venture Partners, Bain Capital Ventures and Kleiner Perkins. CEO and cofounder Bhavin Shah says AI startups “won’t work unless you actually tackle all of these gritty, ugly, messy problems, because that’s actually what makes the world work.”
Meanwhile, Forbes senior writer Richard Nieva profiled billionaire Duolingo founder and CEO Luis von Ahn, who, late last year, decided not to renew the contracts of about 10% of the company’s contracted workforce who did translations and lesson writing. “Our stance as a company is that if we can automate something, we will,” von Ahn told Nieva of the dismissals. “A full-time employee’s job is very hard to automate. But we had some hourly contractors who were doing pretty rote stuff.” Nieva’s story digs into von Ahn and Duolingo’s efforts around AI and his optimistic view that AI can bring high-quality education to the masses.
Both stories are reminders that all these discussions about AI’s impact on jobs, and on how people work, are not just related to the future of work—they’re happening now. These tools are changing how people deal with administrivia on the job. Some rote jobs are getting replaced—yet there’s optimism for how AI can help many others. How leaders deploy it will play a big part of how it makes an impact—for good or for ill.
HUMAN CAPITAL
Consumer confidence fell in September by the largest amount since August 2021, according to a monthly survey released last week by the economic research firm Conference Board. The index, which checks Americans’ temperatures on a host of economic issues, such as expected inflation and job prospects, hit its lowest level since June. The proportion of respondents expecting higher incomes and more jobs available decreased last month, while the percentage of individuals anticipating worse business conditions rose, Forbes’ Derek Saul reported.
While Boeing continues negotiations with its striking union workers, another strike “looks unavoidable,” writes contributor Mark Faithfull. Today, a six-year master contract between the International Longshoremen’s Association—the largest union of maritime workers in North America—and the United States Maritime Alliance is due to expire. The contract includes six of the 10 busiest U.S. ports, handling more than 13 million containers annually, and could impact U.S. retailers as they enter their busy holiday shopping season.
DIVERSITY + INCLUSION
Amid increasingly quiet corporate support for diversity and inclusion, a cohort of civil rights organizations called on CEOs and board members of major companies to maintain their commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that have come under attack. Signed by 19 organizations—including the NAACP, the National Organization for Women, the League of United Latin American Citizens, Asian Americans Advancing Justice and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation—the open letter says that “a small, well-funded, and extreme group of right-wing activists is attempting to pressure companies into abandoning their DEI programs.” Read more from the Associated Press’s coverage here.
WELL-BEING + BENEFITS
Employee well-being and the crush of child care costs were two major themes at the Forbes Future of Work Summit earlier this month, with several panels digging into what HR leaders can do to help battle burnout, improve meeting culture and provide child care benefits at a time when workers’ stress and heavy workloads remain stubbornly high. Two particular highlights: Moms First founder Reshma Saujani telling the story of how she asked GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump about child care costs and his platform, and a trio of thought leaders (Atlassian’s Annie Dean, Work Time Reduction’s Joe O’Connor and author Brigid Schulte) sharing what more employers can do to make structural changes that prevent overwork and address the root causes of burnout.
WHAT’S NEXT: PWC’s KIMBERLY JONES
The concept of personalized or customized benefits—such as flexibility in retirement benefits (some might choose matching contributions toward student loan payments, while others might want a larger 401(k) match)—has been gaining ground in recent years. The top request from workers for improving compensation, according to consulting firm Mercer’s Global Talent Trends study, is to have more types of rewards and the chance to personalize the rewards they get.
That employee request was one reason professional services giant PwC recently shifted how it rewards employees when they reach certain milestones. Rather than handing out rewards when people are promoted, the firm has made the benefits tenure-based, giving out awards at the 3-, 6-, 10- and 15-year milestones (and every five years after that), as well as giving workers more choice about what kind of reward they receive. Options include a paid wellness-oriented vacation in Hawaii or a conservation-driven trip to South Africa to help with wildlife protection—as well as cash rewards (PwC would not share the size of the cash rewards, but said they had to be at least equivalent to such paid retreats or international trips). Forbes spoke with Kimberly Jones, PwC’s talent strategy and people experience leader, about the shift. Excerpts from our conversation have been edited for length and clarity.
What problem are you looking to solve here? Is this addressing a retention issue?
I wouldn’t describe it as a problem that we’re trying to solve. It really was trying to position our firm for the future and respond to what we hear from our employees. It’s an opportunity to show more appreciation and recognition for time of service at PwC. It’s a very demanding environment, and so we’re always trying to be very focused on how to promote well-being.
Are you taking anything away in offering this? Is the money going here instead of somewhere else?
I wouldn’t describe it as taking something away, but replacing something that we had before. It’s a way to be able to recognize more people—not just people who’ve been promoted in any given year. We have repurposed that program. The program we have now is also more personalized because we are offering a choice of rewards.
I’m hearing about companies trying to help people feel like they’re getting ahead in their careers at a time when there’s less turnover and promotions are harder to come by. Is this aimed at addressing that issue?
Like I said before, it is not a particular problem we’re trying to solve. We’ve been working on this for a couple of years now, so it predated [the current job market]. Overall, the strategy is meant to make our environment the best that it can be to hopefully positively impact retention, of course. But more than that, to help people to enjoy their day-to-day as much as possible in what’s a really demanding environment.
Do you have other ways you’re customizing your benefits?
We have a menu of different options, and people can choose from those options. What we hear from our people is all of that is great and nice, but honestly, what they value most is flexibility day-to-day. And so we focus quite a lot on trying to be able to find that balance and give them flexibility, whether it’s through contract work weeks or reduced schedules or just working with your team to figure out ways to honor personal commitments.
Speaking of flexibility and how important that is to employees, I’ve read headlines about the U.K. PwC arm tracking workers’ locations to look at return-to-office behavior. Is that used in the U.S.?
It is not. Two separate firms, the way that we’re organized. Our U.S. policy has not changed. We have hybrid work. People can work with their teams to figure out where they want to be, whether it’s in the office or the client site or working remote that day. We do encourage people to be in person, and we emphasize the benefits of being in person. But no, we’re not tracking [location] or doing badge swipe [tracking].
FACTS + COMMENT
A new survey of CEOs by KPMG found that despite a significant decline in confidence about the global economy over the past decade, top business leaders are still optimistic about growth, senior contributor Jack Kelly reports.
72%: The proportion of CEOs who are confident in the world economy’s direction, down from 93% in 2015
92%: The percentage of CEOs who plan to increase their workforce in the next three years, the highest since 2020, according to the new outlook report
64%: The percentage of CEOs ranking AI investments as their primary focus for 2024
‘CEOs are steadfast about the need to invest in the future.’—KPMG International CEO and Chairman Bill Thomas
STRATEGIES + ADVICE
Nike’s sudden CEO leadership transition teaches executives these important lessons.
The best tips for effective leadership communications in today’s changing workplace.
Want to write amazing generative AI prompts? Check out this step-by-step guide.
VIDEO
2024 Forbes Future of Work Summit | Midyear Check-In: Lattice’s CEO On Skills, Performance And How AI Is Rewiring Work
QUIZ
Which major tech firm spent $2.7 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal, to bring back a star employee in the world of AI who quit in 2021, paying the hefty sum to both license his startup’s technology and include a deal for him to work at the company once again?
- Meta
- Amazon
- Microsoft
Check if you got the answer right here.