Course Overview and Career Focus

More than ever, running a company is about managing people. This class focuses on several core themes around the future of work and people management: How will technology change work and the workforce? How can leaders harness new technologies for transformation of the people side of the business model? How do talent ecosystems matter for investment and productivity? How do different training and skilling models facilitate career development in the face of rapidly changing skill requirements? How will demographic or workforce composition issues impact labor supply? What actions should leaders take in light of the future workforce?

Students in almost any career track will touch upon these issues. Consultants or bankers will themselves see their roles change inside professional services firms and many will also sell services like workforce transformation advisory to clients. Future entrepreneurs or tech leaders may seek to develop automation technology, Ed tech, HR tech, or other businesses that build off future of work trends. Public sector leaders will confront these issues through educational or government institutions.

Course Content and Organization

The course covers the following main themes:

Technology and the future of jobs. Will automation, AI, and robotics lead to net job displacement, and if so, when? We begin by building frameworks for different paths of technology adoption and what these scenarios mean for firms and workers.

Labor markets and good jobs. What defines a good job? Where are good jobs across different industries, occupations, and geographies? What is the role of leaders in investing in good jobs that improve worker wellbeing? What role do ecosystems and local/regional economic development initiatives play?

Demographics. How will companies and labor market institutions need to accommodate demographic changes, and can firms gain a competitive edge by getting out in front of these trends?

New labor models. Will remote work and the gig economy lead to fragmentation of the employment relationship? Will it change the geography of firms? We will consider firms managing the choice between contractors and W2 employees, platforms trying to sell flexible work solutions to enterprises, and adoption of different work arrangements.

Training, reskilling, and transformation. How should firms manage workforce transformation in light of new technologies? Should leaders invest in reskilling or upskilling their workforce instead of buying talent on the market? What makes talent development or training models successful?

Public policy. How should labor market or safety net policy change under different future of work scenarios?

Grading

Grading is based on class participation, a final exam, and a short exercise.

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