n 14 September 2022, news broke that Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard donated the company to combat the climate crisis. The announcement took many by surprise, yet the public widely applauded Chouinard. Patagonia was already well-known for its nontraditional focus on employees and impact, which is likely why Anna Tavis and Stela Lupushor used the company for multiple case studies in their book, “Humans at Work: The Art and Practice of Creating the Hybrid Workplace.”
Patagonia as a business example appears multiple times in the book—often in juxtaposition to the practices of Amazon. The authors analyze many companies, but the book is more than some case studies. “Humans at Work” explains the need for human-centric work practices and how to apply them, while also exploring the past, present, and future of work.
The authors examine the trends of where work happens, noting that before the Industrial Revolution, work was decentralized. People worked at home such as an artisan making shoes or a shopkeeper. Urbanization and industrialization shifted that, bringing workers together in factories and later offices. The COVID-19 pandemic halted this centuries-old trend as remote work took over and the centralization of work unraveled. As the authors’ commented, “There is no going back to the office as we left it in 2020.” People now work from home, co-working spaces, or centralized spaces. Hybrid work is the new reality.
Work is an essence of human existence, yet the authors explain that humans are most often framed as accessories to tools and technology. They ultimately argue that work has been dehumanized. However, the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated a shift to human-centric practices as public health became a priority, forever changing the work landscape. The human in work is gaining consciousness, but the authors assert it must be put further in focus as technology infiltrates our lives.
The exponential growth of technology requires business leaders to think of the future of work in exponential terms. Most humans tend to think linearly, making them unprepared for the “consequences of exponential events,” write Tavis and Lupushor. Overall, many organizations remain unprepared for AI, machine learning, quantum computing, and other exponential technologies already spilling into our lives.
Work is hybrid in the use of both humans and technology, but also in the blurring relationship between the two. The authors discuss anthropomorphism—the attribution of human characteristics to nonhuman entities—and how it remains widespread with technology. For example, user experience (UX) design or digital assistants like Amazon’s Alexa. The authors also highlight debates surrounding extreme forms of anthropomorphism, such as humanoid robots. Some researchers caution against blurring the lines between humans and technology to the point that differences are indistinguishable. These arguments are not new—just take the themes of the “Blade Runner” movies or the “Westworld” TV series. The blurring of technology and humans is infiltrating all aspects of society, including work. While this poses a danger, the authors stress that humans must be first in the contest between the two.
Beyond technology, the authors explore other trends changing the future of work such as the growing importance of impact over productivity. As with the positive response to Chouinard donating Patagonia to fight the climate crisis, people are placing impact to higher importance. From diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, to practices that benefit employees as well as the planet, impact is becoming a measure of work to be reckoned with.
The meaning of work is changing. People are seeking more purposeful employment. Empathy is no longer being pushed out the door. People don’t want to go back to the traditional way of work—the authors exemplify this with examples of pushback on companies that have forced workers back in offices full-time. Instead, companies are increasingly embracing “employee experience” strategies to improve outcomes for both the worker and the organization. All of these transitions remain important.
“Humans at Work” supports analysis with numerous real-world case studies. Patagonia and Amazon are mentioned most often, seemingly framed as the good (Patagonia) and the bad (Amazon). While this juxtaposition illustrates two vastly different business models, I feel it would have been strengthened to include other companies as frequently as these two.
Tavis and Lupushor conclude “Humans at Work” with their “Humans at Work Manifesto”—an outline of how to implement human-centric work practices. They stress an urgency to the matter, depicting a standoff between humans and technology where technology might just prevail. Reading the book, I wanted more exploration into this competition and what a potential future would look like if technology overcomes the human. I expect it’s a contest that will continue for the years and decades ahead. However, while we don’t know the outcome for certain, we do know this: The future of work will be hybrid.
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The Future of Work is Hybrid
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash.
November 14, 2022
Hybrid work is the new reality. Diplomatic Courier's Whitney DeVries reviews “Humans at Work” by Anna Tavis and Stela Lupushor, which explains the need for human-centric work practices and how to apply them, while also exploring the past, present, and future of work.
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n 14 September 2022, news broke that Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard donated the company to combat the climate crisis. The announcement took many by surprise, yet the public widely applauded Chouinard. Patagonia was already well-known for its nontraditional focus on employees and impact, which is likely why Anna Tavis and Stela Lupushor used the company for multiple case studies in their book, “Humans at Work: The Art and Practice of Creating the Hybrid Workplace.”
Patagonia as a business example appears multiple times in the book—often in juxtaposition to the practices of Amazon. The authors analyze many companies, but the book is more than some case studies. “Humans at Work” explains the need for human-centric work practices and how to apply them, while also exploring the past, present, and future of work.
The authors examine the trends of where work happens, noting that before the Industrial Revolution, work was decentralized. People worked at home such as an artisan making shoes or a shopkeeper. Urbanization and industrialization shifted that, bringing workers together in factories and later offices. The COVID-19 pandemic halted this centuries-old trend as remote work took over and the centralization of work unraveled. As the authors’ commented, “There is no going back to the office as we left it in 2020.” People now work from home, co-working spaces, or centralized spaces. Hybrid work is the new reality.
Work is an essence of human existence, yet the authors explain that humans are most often framed as accessories to tools and technology. They ultimately argue that work has been dehumanized. However, the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated a shift to human-centric practices as public health became a priority, forever changing the work landscape. The human in work is gaining consciousness, but the authors assert it must be put further in focus as technology infiltrates our lives.
The exponential growth of technology requires business leaders to think of the future of work in exponential terms. Most humans tend to think linearly, making them unprepared for the “consequences of exponential events,” write Tavis and Lupushor. Overall, many organizations remain unprepared for AI, machine learning, quantum computing, and other exponential technologies already spilling into our lives.
Work is hybrid in the use of both humans and technology, but also in the blurring relationship between the two. The authors discuss anthropomorphism—the attribution of human characteristics to nonhuman entities—and how it remains widespread with technology. For example, user experience (UX) design or digital assistants like Amazon’s Alexa. The authors also highlight debates surrounding extreme forms of anthropomorphism, such as humanoid robots. Some researchers caution against blurring the lines between humans and technology to the point that differences are indistinguishable. These arguments are not new—just take the themes of the “Blade Runner” movies or the “Westworld” TV series. The blurring of technology and humans is infiltrating all aspects of society, including work. While this poses a danger, the authors stress that humans must be first in the contest between the two.
Beyond technology, the authors explore other trends changing the future of work such as the growing importance of impact over productivity. As with the positive response to Chouinard donating Patagonia to fight the climate crisis, people are placing impact to higher importance. From diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, to practices that benefit employees as well as the planet, impact is becoming a measure of work to be reckoned with.
The meaning of work is changing. People are seeking more purposeful employment. Empathy is no longer being pushed out the door. People don’t want to go back to the traditional way of work—the authors exemplify this with examples of pushback on companies that have forced workers back in offices full-time. Instead, companies are increasingly embracing “employee experience” strategies to improve outcomes for both the worker and the organization. All of these transitions remain important.
“Humans at Work” supports analysis with numerous real-world case studies. Patagonia and Amazon are mentioned most often, seemingly framed as the good (Patagonia) and the bad (Amazon). While this juxtaposition illustrates two vastly different business models, I feel it would have been strengthened to include other companies as frequently as these two.
Tavis and Lupushor conclude “Humans at Work” with their “Humans at Work Manifesto”—an outline of how to implement human-centric work practices. They stress an urgency to the matter, depicting a standoff between humans and technology where technology might just prevail. Reading the book, I wanted more exploration into this competition and what a potential future would look like if technology overcomes the human. I expect it’s a contest that will continue for the years and decades ahead. However, while we don’t know the outcome for certain, we do know this: The future of work will be hybrid.
