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Bhavin Shah, CEO and Co-Founder of MoveWorks.
Photo: MOVEWORKS
IIf you’ve heard the constant drumbeat that AI will “free people from the boring parts of their jobs,” and you wonder if it’s really happening, you might want to listen to these guys.
ForbesRashi Srivastava profiles the conversational AI platform MoveWorks, a $2.1 billion company generating revenue by automating dull office tasks like solving IT problems or submitting PTO requests. Srivastava reports that MoveWorks is used by nearly 5 million employees at 350 companies such as Hearst, GitHub, Toyota and Salesforce, while Lightspeed has raised more than $300 million in venture capital from high-profile backers such as Venture Partners, Bain Capital Ventures and Kleiner Perkins. CEO and co-founder Bhavin Shah says AI startups “don’t work unless you solve all these nasty, ugly, messy problems, because that’s what makes the world work.”
Meanwhile, Forbes Senior author Richard Nieva profiles billionaire Duolingo founder and CEO Louis von Ahn, who said late last year that about 10% of the translation and texting company’s contract workforce decided not to renew their contracts. “Our attitude as a company is that if we can automate something, we will,” von Ahn told Niva about the layoffs. “A full-time employee’s job is very difficult to automate. But we have some hourly contractors who are doing a lot of rote stuff. Neeva’s story digs into von Ahn and Duolingo’s efforts around AI and his optimistic vision 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 the way people work aren’t just about the future of work—they’re happening now. These tools are changing the way people deal with administration at work. Few mundane jobs are being replaced—yet there is optimism about how AI can help others. How leaders implement it plays a large role in how it impacts for good or ill.
Human capital
Consumer confidence fell in September by the biggest amount since August 2021, according to a monthly survey released last week by economic research firm the Conference Board. The index, which gauges Americans’ temperatures on a range 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 fell last month, while the proportion expecting worse business conditions rose, ForbesDerek Saul reports.
As Boeing continues to negotiate with its striking union workers, another strike “seems inevitable,” 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 will expire. The deal includes six of the 10 busiest US ports, handling more than 13 million containers annually, and could impact US retailers as they enter their busy holiday shopping season.
Diversity + Inclusion
A group of civil rights organizations called on the CEOs and board members of major companies to maintain their commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion programs that have come under attack, amid increasingly muted corporate support for diversity and inclusion. 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 states, “A small, well-funded, and extreme group of right-wing activists are using their DEI Trying to pressure companies to drop the programs. Read more from Associated Press coverage here.
Prosperity + benefits
Employee well-being and the crush of childcare costs were two major themes at the Forbes Future of Work Summit earlier this month, as several panels dug into what HR leaders can do to help battle burnout, improve meeting culture and provide childcare benefits. A time when worker stress and heavy workload are stubbornly high. Two special highlights: Moms First founder Reshma Saujani takes on GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump about child care costs and his platform, and a trio of thought leaders (Atlasians’ Annie Dean, Work Time Reduction’s Joe O’Connor, and author Brigid Schulte) on what prevents overwork and burnout. Sharing what more employers can do to make structural changes to address root causes.
What’s next: PwC Kimberly Jones
Kimberly Jones, Talent Strategy and People Experiencing Leader at PwC
Photo courtesy of PwC
The concept of Personalized or customized benefitsSuch flexibility in retirement benefits (some may choose to match contributions to student loan payments, others may want a larger 401(k) match)—has surged in recent years. According to consulting firm Mercers, the top request from workers is to improve compensation A study of global talent trendsThat means more types of rewards and the opportunity to personalize the rewards they receive.
That employee request is one reason professional services giant PwC recently changed how it rewards employees when they reach certain milestones. Instead of handing out rewards when individuals are promoted, the company has made benefits tenure-based, giving out awards at 3-, 6-, 10- and 15-year milestones (and every five years thereafter). Making workers more selective about how they are rewarded. Options include a paid wellness-based vacation in Hawaii or a conservation-based trip to South Africa to help with wildlife conservation—as well as cash prizes (PwC won’t share the size of the cash rewards, but they should 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? Does it solve the retention problem?
I wouldn’t describe it as a problem we’re trying to solve. It’s really about positioning our organization for the future and trying to respond to what we hear from our employees. This is an opportunity to show further appreciation and recognition for the time served at PwC. It’s a very demanding environment, so we’re always trying to focus a lot on how to promote well-being.
Are you taking anything in offering it? Is the money going here instead of somewhere else?
I wouldn’t describe it as removing it, but replacing what we had before. This is a way to identify more people than just the people who were promoted in any given year. We rebuilt that program. The program we have now is also more personalized as we offer a choice of rewards.
At a time when turnover is low and promotions are hard to come by, I hear companies trying to help people feel they are advancing in their careers. Does it aim to solve that problem?
As I said before, this is not a specific problem we are trying to solve. We’ve been working on this for a few years now, so it’s early [the current job market]. Overall, the strategy aims to change our environment for the better, which can hopefully influence retention. But more than that, it’s about helping people enjoy their daily lives as much as possible in a really demanding environment.
Do you have other ways to customize your benefits?
We have a menu of different options and people can choose from those options. That’s all great and good that we hear from our people, but honestly, what they value most is daily flexibility. So we’re very focused on trying to find that balance and give them flexibility, whether through contract work weeks or reduced schedules, or working with your team to figure out ways to honor personal commitments.
Talking about flexibility and how important it is for employees, I read Highlights UK PwC arm tracking workers’ locations to look at return-to-office behaviour. Is it used in the US?
It is not. Two different organizations, the way we are managed. Our US policy has not changed. We have hybrid work. People can work with their teams to figure out where they want to be that day, either in the office or at a client site, or working remotely. We encourage people to be individual and we emphasize the benefits of being individual. But no, we are not tracking [location] or swiping a badge [tracking].
Facts + Comment
A new one Survey of CEOs by KPMG Senior contributor Jack Kelly finds that despite a significant decline in confidence in the global economy over the past decade, top business leaders are still optimistic about growth. Reports.
72%: The proportion of CEOs who are confident in the direction of the global economy is down from 93% in 2015
92%: The percentage of CEOs planning to grow their workforces in the next three years is the highest since 2020, according to a new outlook report.
64%: Percentage of CEOs who rank AI investments as their primary focus in 2024
‘CEOs are adamant about the need to invest in the future.’-Bill Thomas, CEO and Chairman, KPMG International
Strategies + Advice
Nike’s sudden CEO leadership change teaches executives these important lessons.
Best tips for effective leadership communications in today’s changing workplace.
Want to write amazingly productive 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 AI rewiring work
Quiz
No major technology company spent $2.7 billionAccording to Wall Street JournalTo bring back a star employee of the AI ​​world who left in 2021, pay a huge sum to both license his startup’s technology and include a contract to have him work for the company once again?
- Meta
- Amazon
- Microsoft
Check if you got the answer right here.
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