Introduction
Automation, HR 4.0 and the Future of Work
Human Capital interacted with Ravin Jesuthasan, Managing Director at Willis Towers Watson, author, futurist, and a global thought leader, to gather an understanding about applying automation to create optimal human-machine combinations, the imperatives comprising HR 4.0, why the HR profession needs to rethink its role as a steward of work, and how COVID-19 is shaping the future of work.
HC: The ongoing crisis has forced organisations to rally bold ideas and radically rethink the way they work. It is no wonder, then, that leaders desperately want to harness the disruptive power of automation. But the nagging question is: How? In what unique ways does your recent book, Reinventing Jobs, address this challenge?
RJ: A recent global survey by Willis Towers Watson indicated that 48% of organisations have taken action, are planning to take action, or are considering automating work to reduce cost or increase productivity. It is essential that organisations “lead with the work” and not the technology, or we run a real risk of a jobless recovery.
Reinventing Jobs is intended to be a guide for business leaders to help them achieve the optimal combinations of humans and automation. It demonstrates (with over 120 cases) how the deconstruction of jobs into tasks can help identify where automation should substitute, augment or create human work.
