Deborah Perry Piscione is a renowned futurist and expert in business strategy and growth, specializing in the transformation of work and organizations in the era of AI and web3 technologies. As the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Work3 Institute, she leads cutting-edge research and advisory services on the convergence of AI, blockchain, and emerging technologies, providing strategic insights on their profound impact on business models, organizational structures, and the future of work.
Her new book is called Employment Is Dead: How Disruptive Technologies Are Revolutionizing the Way We Work and can be pre-ordered here.
Below please find an excerpt.
The influence of AI and generative artificial intelligence (gen AI) will be profound, significantly shaping the future of work, transforming the labor market, and revolutionizing the roles of office professionals. While AI will certainly replace some repetitive tasks and jobs for individuals, the real promise lies in how AI and humans will work together.4 A recent study by the International Labor Union, a part of the United Nations, has indicated that AI is more inclined to enhance job roles than eliminate them.5 IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said during an interview with CNBC that AI is “absolutely not displacing—it’s augmenting” white-collar jobs.
Conversely, many business leaders think otherwise. In a personal interview with Edo Segal, the founder of Touchcast, a startup that reimagines the future of the generative web, has said: “We have never had a scenario where AI replaces the domain of a cognitive practice at this scale. Automation was originally intended to replace manual labor, but now it’s possible to scale the automation of cognitive roles. We had narrow AI for narrow use cases, but not broad solutions like the ones emerging now that can replace entire professions like programmers, certain types of lawyers, and management consultants.” Recent research by Goldman Sachs supports Segal’s claims and reveals that AI could replace the equivalent of three hundred million full-time jobs in the next fifteen years, impacting office jobs that were previously thought to be irreplaceable.
With any technological evolution, there are winners and losers. According to the World Economic Forum’s “Future of Jobs Report” on job growth in the next five years, “23 percent of jobs are expected to change by 2029, with sixty-nine million new jobs created,” with the fastest-growing jobs in AI and machine learning specialists, among other web3 technology-related jobs. Over the longer term, AI could eventually increase the total annual value of goods and services by 7 per- cent, if Goldman Sachs’s AI growth projections are fully realized. And, with AI investment forecasted to approach $200 billion globally by 2028, the technology could support humans in ways never before imagined.
For now, the general consensus is that AI will have a positive impact on the future of work, making companies more profitable and productive. But this shift is also coming at a time when the traditional business model will be spun on its head by other disruptive technologies.
The emerging decentralized work model hinges on the distribution of authority and tasks, which promises to make work more agile and responsive to individual needs and collective goals. These technologies, often referred to as web3, form the bedrock of a groundbreaking shift in what’s possible and how new work models will bring greater agility to companies seeking a competitive advantage. Web3 is introducing a range of novel business models, thanks to technologies such as blockchain, decentralized protocols, digital systems that operate without a central authority, and user ownership of data.
The gig economy, for example, is evolving into a global talent marketplace, where individual, independent workers—formerly known as employees—will have more power and control over their earnings and livelihoods. With effective implementation, web3 technology has the potential to address various business challenges and employee pain points. For instance, it can eliminate the need for middlemen or managers, allowing workers to engage directly with clients or customers. The use of smart contracts on the blockchain can automate and guarantee fair compensation to reduce conflicts and ensure prompt payments. Contributors can truly own their digital creations like art, music, and project contributions through blockchain and NFTs, giving them greater control and equitable remuneration.
Forward-thinking companies are starting to experiment with decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), where decision-making is distributed among contributors. DAOs enable community-driven projects to recognize all participants involved as stakeholders to vote on proposals, investments, and governance matters. DAOs are like a digital democracy where you’re no longer an employee but a co-creator in the project with direct investment in its success.
Along with the rise of DAOs comes the transition of employees from mere cogs in the corporate machine to empowered contributors who have a tangible stake in their work. Members of a DAO can have a direct say in decision-making processes, from resource allocation to strategic direction. This not only democratizes the workplace but also allows employees to retain much more of the value they generate.
In this system, every task completed, every idea contributed, and every project led can be directly attributed to an individual, who can then be fairly compensated and recognized. Unlike traditional setups where the organization harvests the fruits of your labor, DAOs ensure that value flows back to the people who create it. In essence, DAOs facilitate a culture of verifiable, transparent, and equitable ownership, thereby redefining what it means to be truly engaged in one’s work. And who is best poised to evangelize and utilize these web3 applications? Gen Z—the new wave of workers already well versed in digital technologies, decentralized systems, and a culture of innovation and social awareness.
Members of the new generation have called into question the traditional pathways to career success because they are experiencing the effects of its unraveling. College is more expensive than it has ever been, with no guarantee of employment after completion. They are struggling to afford the cost of living on one income, and a majority are forced to chase a side hustle. They’ve seen generations before them hustle and grind for forty years with the promise of a decent retirement—and even that model is slipping away. They’d rather prioritize living now while they are young enough to enjoy it. Thus, they are pushing back on the traditional corporate narrative that they have to work to be happy.
In fact, they believe the opposite is true. Happiness isn’t what you do; it’s who you choose to be. And they are choosing a different path. The term “youthquake,” originally coined by Vogue magazine in the 1960s to describe the era’s fashion and cultural shifts, has made a comeback to embody Gen Z’s impact in the workplace for two key reasons: its dominating population and its innate digital fluency. Approximately 52 percent of the global population is under age thirty, according to the US Census Bureau, and the members of this digitally native generation have had devices in their hands since they were toddlers, which has profoundly shaped their values, interests, and world- view.
Gen Zers often blend reality with the digital realm, sometimes even preferring to live, create, and work in the latter. Consider Roblox, the gaming platform that allows users to play hundreds of user-created games. It has amassed a staggering 66.1 million daily users who actively engage in buying, selling, designing, and innovating within its virtual universe. Many of these users, who have been actively playing open-source games for almost two decades, already believe they have a viable job because of the value they produce to earn the virtual currency awarded in these games, which they can even exchange for real money on the Roblox Developer Exchange Pro- gram (DevEx).
According to a recent EarthWeb poll, 75 percent of kids aged six to seventeen now aspire to be YouTubers, rather than traditional professionals such as doctors or firefighters. This trend highlights the rising impact of the $250 billion influencer economy, where creative freedom often outweighs the appeal of traditional corporate jobs.As we look ahead, it’s crucial to consider what work will look like for a generation that has come of age with AI, blockchain, and decentralization.
A few trends have emerged from the Gen Z–led companies we’ve interviewed; for example, they hold “Mindfulness Fridays” for deep focus without meetings and encourage quarterly “heart checks” to see how direct reports are feeling about their workload and pay. They mandate a “slump hour” when employees are not allowed to schedule meetings immediately after lunch. They use emoji in abundance and curse freely on Slack. They can head to the gym in the afternoon and run some errands, knowing they’ll be working into the night.
In short, Gen Zers don’t want the traditional corporate nine-to-five. They are fluidly blending work and life together. They work to live rather than live to work. It’s this youthquake that brings a fresh, unapologetically critical perspective to how work should be organized, compensated, and valued.
Excerpt published with permission.
