Human Work In the Age of Smart Machines

Jamie Merisotis, the author of Human Work, brings immense credibility to the topic. As CEO of Lumina Foundation, one of the leading sponsors of research and innovation in the sector, he's deeply engaged in every element of the skills development system. The perspective gained by that rich experience shins through in this book. Many works on this topic focus on single parts of the system, like community colleges, or specific phenomenon like the growing capability of intelligent devices. Merisotis brings an integrative perspective to the topic. He highlights the various factors-- the change composition of tasks, the impact of globalization, the rise of "uberization" (e.g., the growth of the gig economy) among highly skilled workers-- are changing the nature of work and suggest that people will increasingly be drawn to work that only humans can do. Machines do repetitive tasks well; they are flawless in computing correlations between different data sources. But the don't emote, they don't integrate insights from across fields of knowledge or blend quantitative and qualitative findings well, they do not generate original concepts. He sees a world where people can engage in activities for which they are uniquely suited and which for most are far more satisfying and uplifting than routine, repetitive work often felt to be meaningless. He provides a template to prepare workers to take advantage of those emerging opportunities in the future. Commonsensical, well-written and succinct, this is an excellent primer on the how work will evolve and how leaders from every sector can help exploit the changes being wrought by seemingly frightening trends to forge a hopeful future for workers

Jamie Merisotis is a proven, wise and well informed thought leader and philanthropic practitioner in the challenging areas of work, workforce and higher education. I wanted to be sure I had a chance to see his latest book as soon as it came out (thank you, Amazon!). It came today and I was not disappointed. This is a helpful, calm and accessible assessment of enormous challenges that lie ahead for all of us--where do people fit in a world of increasingly smart machines and automated processes? What indeed is truly human work? Jamie's answers are thoughtful, and surprisingly optimistic: our role has never been clearer, and this is the time to determine what only humans can do, and then make sure we are doing it--and educated and prepared to do it--as well as we possibly can. This book provides that guidance, and does so in an accessible and provocative style that delivers its essential message in well under 200 pages--meaning it will actually be read. There are important messages here for policy makers, higher education leaders, philanthropic grant makers, and corporate HR department--and also, for all of us. The good news is that after reading this book, you can--and will--still feel good about what is coming next, if only we have the good sense to do something about it.

Jamie Merisotis' Human Work in the Age of Smart Machines is a particularly timely read. In this COVID era, it feels like there is an aggressive undercurrent in the US workforce - where do I fit in? (at home, virtually, in a hybrid world)?No, the robots are not coming for our jobs, Merisotis argues, but the opportunities to succeed will be incumbent on each of us, and our employers, to grow and adapt. As automation becomes more systematic, we will be required to both open ourselves and train ourselves to develop the many traits that are uniquely human: curiosity, creativity, compromise, reasoning. "Earning, learning and serving make up human work," Merisotis writes, while using a dozen plus real-life examples to illustrate his points. I thought the "people stories" were especially interesting and effective, and kept the book from becoming too wonkish for a lay reader, like me.Workers seek meaning and satisfaction in their jobs, and what that looks like since March has changed. Merisotis challenges employers to make the shift to embrace their dawning role as learning organizations. It's an ambitious plan, one tied inherently to the demands of racial justice, but ultimately it caused me to reflect on what will be demanded of each of us to succeed side-by-side with automation.

Most of the thousands of books and articles on the future of work seem to be about what you might call the coming “robot zombie apocalypse” in which technology replaces most workers and eliminates many if not most jobs.As Jamie Merisotis says in this book, smart machines will eliminate many jobs, but at the same time, reliance on AI and technology will create millions of new jobs for people prepared for them. Work is not going away, but it is being transformed by technology. Rather than focus on the future of work, this is about the work of the future and how most of our assumptions about it will need to change dramatically.

Too many people bemoan the rise of automation, but few have the vision to see that it has the potential to greatly improve our satisfaction with work. If I could jump into the future described in Human Work, I would in a second. It would be a relief to unload the tedious, repetitious parts of my day and exchange them for what really drives me and gives me inspiration. I could use those hours for process improvement, research, networking and strategic planning, and I would not miss spreadsheets, invoices or payroll even a little bit. Jamie Merisotis clearly has the background and comprehension of the educational landscape to know that this transformation is possible.

Human Work, by Mr. Merisotis is a great read for educators and business professionals. Through storytelling, he describes the need for changing systems and the need for people skills because robots are changing the nature of human work.

Vital information and proposals for the immediate and long-term future of our world. A quick and cogent tutorial about how we should be both educating and training all members of our workforce.

A great view on the futureEducation should be for everyone, at anytime of life, and readily available to all