The Future of Work

It was an honor and a revelation to meet with Tanguy Dulac to discuss how the current era of disruption is informing the future of how we work, and therefore, how we learn. His recent series synthesizing the results of Deloitte’s 2025 Global Human Capital Trends Report is rich with insights on how to frame thinking for organizations seeking to keep up with the societal shifts we are all experiencing.

Six points for your consideration:

The average worker now faces 10 major changes a year - up from just 2 in 2016. This rapid pace of transition creates anxiety for workers, and we can’t ask them to move faster if they don’t know where they stand. The concept of “stagility” as a deliberate balance between stability and agility is a defining characteristic for organizations who adapt and survive. Imagine applying this to management of schools!

Nearly half of workers’ time is spent on work that doesn’t create value. They are bogged down by unnecessary tasks, meetings, and digital distractions.  Organizations can free up employee potential by embracing the concept of 'slack' – providing unassigned time to reduce burnout, promote productivity and fuel innovation. When was the last time school staff was allotted unassigned time?

Would you stay in a job where your value is shrinking - and machine co-workers are thriving? As AI changes how we work, it reshapes meaning, connection, and trust among workers. An organization that lives its employee value proposition (EVP) helps workers know and understand their future, so that they are willing and able to invest in its future. What is the EVP for teachers today? Five years from now? Further in the future?

Everyone wants great leaders, but we're eliminating the roles that create them. Mid-level managers are actually the documented key to organizational success. Forty percent of their time is spent tending to administrative tasks and responding to emergencies. Their role needs to be redesigned to focus on higher-value, human-centered work. What are the pathways for educators to become true leaders?

78% of workers say they know what motivates them, but only 33% believe their managers know…and 60% expect managers to increase their motivation to perform. The secret to improving worker performance isn't strategy or systems but understanding what motivates makes each person and tailoring work to meet their values and aspirations. This requires investing in managers, equipping them to lead as individual motivators. What incentives are in place for educators to remain and grow in the profession?

Everyone agrees that performance management is broken. But what if the fix isn’t fixing it - but forgetting it entirely? Only 2% of HR officers say their performance management systems work, and only 6% use data to improve performance and build trust. To unlock workers’ potential, organizations must adopt broader approaches that enable people to thrive, grow and fulfill their potential. What does a more robust form of recruiting and retaining the best people in education look like?

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Much food for thought about the future of work in general and the future of education, in particular! Empathy, relationships, wellness and room to grow are valued by today’s employees in the organizations for which they choose to work; what does this apply to school systems?

Watch the full discussion to hear more.

Tanguy Dulac is editor-in-chief of the We Are Human At Work newsletter, providing weekly insights for a sustainable future in the workplace, a lecturer on sustainable human capital management at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland, and the CEO & Founder of PeopleCentriX, empowering leaders to deliver transformative experiences that inspire individuals to be their best and do their best. You can watch the entire discussion with Tanguy here.