The future of work: Human capability

A number articles, journals and blogs, have centred around the effects of remote working on employees and business continuity considerations. I want to focus on two of the main attributes of what we now all refer to as the ‘future of work’. Sounds much better than the ‘new normal’ which has now been way over-used and stressed. Firstly, the element of human capabilities is discussed, and this because the ‘future of work’ involves digital spaces and tools, so never before has the ‘human’ element been more important. Secondly, the notion of digital workspaces is considered as an integral part of the workplace. So how a changing landscape has necessitated a change in our workspace.

The solution purported here is re-architecting work with a human-centred approach to unlock the human potential. Simply put, humanising the future of work to elevate the workforce. This elevation would help businesses reach their desired outcomes and unlock the workforce’s full potential.

Human capabilities

With the advent of unexpected events, the pace of change quickens, increased pressure is placed on organisations, be it from investors, customers and especially employees.

Against such a backdrop, the focus on human capabilities has been drawn into the spotlight. In a June 2020 article entitled Human Inside: How capabilities can unleash business performance, Deloitte research found that this resource is largely untapped and under-developed. So why are we only now realising the power of human capability? Well, the need to grow and thrive in an ambiguous future, not to mention a fast-paced one, requires organisations to carefully develop a deep focus on human capabilities.

Before we proceed more with this, it is best to list the capabilities. These are curiosity, imagination, creativity, empathy and courage. Deloitte establishes that these ‘superpowers’ when applied across all levels and departments, are key in creating differentiation and new value creation required to navigate pressures and sustain success.

Understanding what benefits organisations gain by developing these human capabilities across their departments is an important factor in determining their relevance in today’s business environment. One cited benefit is ‘the ability to create more and more value’ through employees’ ability to identify unseen opportunities and problems, which would then lead to developing approaches to address these problems and opportunities.

As we have seen in the past year, unforeseen complications and opportunities may continue to crop up. Although they may not all be large and pervasive, they are still relevant to organisation. People need to solve more problems and find new ways to maximise on opportunities. Hence, cultivating human capabilities through continuous training will create an ideal environment to put to use employees’ imagination and creativity, as well as motivate them to action when needed.

Moving on to another important aspect in cultivating employees’ capabilities is re-designing the work environment. Indifferent and hostile environments will regress capabilities. Management practices and systems shape the culture and the environment in which managers and workers will apply their capabilities. If a performance target is the only priority, then the space to hear or encourage workers, or to reflect on their approach is not created. When managers repeatedly fail to respond to a worker’s curiosity or shows no interest when a worker brings up a creative approach, it can kill motivation to the sometimes difficult and uncomfortable work of applying capabilities. Micromanagement especially, and lack of trust, also hinder the use of capabilities.

“An organisation that draws on our humanness rather than drawing unfavourable comparisons with our lack of machineness will build a workforce prepared to view the future optimistically, open to evolving combinations of man and machine and meaningful work that foster growth and reinvention. (Curiosity is a powerful antidote to fear. Imagination works against cynicism. Creativity counters helplessness and empathy can’t coexist with apathy.)”

The second article in this series focuses on technology and workspaces.