What is the future of work? A science mapping analysis

Purpose: The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and the associated economic lockdown provided a jolt to businesses around the world and the global economy Amid the ongoing uncertainty, circumstances varied across business sectors and regions, but the common goal for business organizations was to respond effectively, devising strategies to survive the turmoil and accelerate recovery The narrative in India was no different from the rest of the world Due to the novelty of the event, literature regarding its impact on the strategic management of firms was scarce Thus, this paper aims to attempt to ascertain the crisis impact on firms and subsequently unravel the tactical short-term and long-term strategic responses initiated by Indian firms Design/methodology/approach: The authors carried out an empirical investigation to comprehend the strategic foresight adopted by Indian firms Following a structured literature review, the authors conducted semi-structured open-ended interviews with 28 business experts who were involved in drafting strategic responses for their respective firms Subsequently, the authors performed a thematic content analysis of the expert interview responses to document firm-level strategic responses to the COVID-19 crisis and associated economic lockdown The authors further searched reputed media articles to supplement and triangulate the primary research findings with management perspectives Findings: The authors identified that managers had adopted a dual approach responding to the disruption Companies simultaneously focused on surviving the crisis in the short-term by reconfiguring existing resources and initiated long-term recovery by mobilizing efforts for a redesigned business model The research findings indicated that companies had adapted to the dynamic chaotic crisis environment to fulfill the changed consumer expectations Remote working was widely implemented, supply networks were adjusted, operations were managed with minimal resources, working capital was closely monitored and the product-portfolio was revamped to reap benefits in an essentials-only world The impact of several strategic firm responses was determined through this study on the revenue, profitability, operational costs and regulatory adherence of the companies along with the ability to meet stakeholder expectations The study suggested that companies encouraged innovative solutions and highlighted the importance of collaborative inter-organizational practices Research limitations/implications: The study contributed to an inter-theoretical perspective on firm strategic initiatives to confront a global crisis Resource-based view, dynamic capabilities perspective and industrial-organizational theory-based perspectives, were applied This facilitated an extensive analysis of the entire business ecosystem to identify various paths to accelerated recovery during and post COVID-19 world Practical implications: The research findings would aid managers in drafting a comprehensive response strategy during and post COVID-19 world This study results would help managers in addressing multiple concerns such as the sustainability of operations in the short-term through working capital management, the fulfillment of changing consumer needs through sustained innovation and business model alterations to ensure long term growth The study enabled managers to prioritize necessary actions, ascertain the impact of strategic initiatives and build sustainable competitive advantage for long-term growth Originality/value: The novel coronavirus pandemic and the associated economic lockdown impacted firm strategies and this was one of the very first empirical studies regarding how firm-level short-term tactics and long-term strategies were getting reshaped Traditionally, companies were prepared to handle localized disruptions but a crisis of such epic global proportions jeopardized most business This study provided an extensive review of the short-term tactical and long-term strategic response perspectives adopted by Indian firms to ab orb the impact of this unique crisis and expected recovery with renewed strength This was one of the first research articles to provide an inter-theoretical perspective on the ongoing global pandemic This integrated view of the possible impacts of firm-level strategic initiatives provided a detailed knowledge repository to design the crisis response capability of firms © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited

Coronavirus pandemic and economic lockdown;study of strategic initiatives and tactical responses of firms

Automation fears: Drivers and solutions

Digitization within Human Resource Management (HRM) has resulted in Artificial Intelligence (AI) becoming increasingly prevalent in Human Resource Management Systems (HRMS) and HR Information Systems (HRIS). The tactical procedures of recruitment, employee performance evaluation and satisfaction, compensation and benefit analysis, best practice analysis, discipline management, and employee training and development systems have seen a growth in the incorporation of AI. To better understand this evolution, we seek to explore publication sources and literature that feature the application of AI within HRM. By utilizing a systematic literature review methodology, this paper identifies which tactical HRIS (T-HRIS) components are featured in literature and how each T-HRIS component is represented. This paper gives insight to which component of tactical HRM/HRIS receives attention and identifies gaps in research to give direction to future research agendas.

Artificial Intelligence in Tactical Human Resource Management: A Systematic Literature Review

Co-working spaces (CWSs) have emerged as a distinctive phenomenon in the sharing economy. They are collaborative environments that feed innovation and creativity under the slogan “working alone together”. While policy makers and scholars were optimistic about their role in promoting entrepreneurial endeavours and fostering growth, the spread of the COVID-19 across the world has drastically changed the way we work, communicate, and navigate daily life. This study offers a comprehensive review of the existing literature on CWSs. To do so, a bibliometric analysis is proposed, combining the use of traditional bibliometric tools with science mapping techniques. A total of 118 documents are reviewed and the results are presented at two different levels: (1) descriptive analysis of the status of the research on a CWS and (2) its conceptual structure (topics and trends). The study concludes with some directions for future research. Specifically, based on the recurrent topics discussed up to date in the literature, it is possible to identify four key areas—i.e., geographical location, physical space, business models and inclusive communities—that are promising for research and that may bring useful insights for defining co-working’s place in a post-pandemic society.

What do we know about co-working spaces? Trends and challenges ahead

The world is witnessing the advent of a wide range of technologies like machine learning, big data analytics, artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, robotics, additive manufacturing, augmented and virtual reality, cloud computing, Internet of Things and such others. Amidst this concoction of diverse technologies, the future of work is getting redefined. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to understand the future of work in the context of an emerging economy like India.,The authors undertook a qualitative research with a positivist approach. The authors undertook expert interviews with 26 respondents. The respondents were interviewed with a semi-structured open-ended questionnaire. The responses were content analyzed for themes. System dynamics was applied to explicate the phenomenon studied.,The authors found that the future of work has multiple facets. The authors found that in future, organizations would not only use automation for lower end routine manual jobs, but also for moderate knowledge-centric tasks. Future jobs would have significant data dependency, and employees would be expected to analyze and synthesize data for sense making. Another finding pointed out that in future, individuals would be constantly required for skills upgradation and thus learning would become a continuous lifelong process. In future, individuals would get short-term tasks rather than long-term secured jobs. Thus, job flexibility would be high as freelancing would be a dominant way of work. Organizations would reduce dedicated workspaces and would use co-working spaces to reduce office space investments. In future, jobs that are impregnated with novelty and creativity would remain. A finding of concern was that with the advent of automated technologies a larger portion of workforce would lose jobs and there could be widespread unemployment that might lead to social unrest. The provision of universal basic income has been advocated by some experts to handle social crisis.,This research is based on an organization centric view that is anchored in the resource-based view and dynamic capabilities. The research contributes to the conversation of human resource co-existence with automated technologies for organizations of tomorrow. Thus, this work specifically contributes to strategic human resource with technology capabilities in organizations.,These research findings would help organizational design and development practitioners to comprehend what kind of interventions would be required to be future ready to both accommodate technology and human resources. For policy makers, the results of this study would help them design policy interventions that could keep the nation’s workforce job ready in the age of automated technologies through investments in automated technology education.,India is bestowed with one of the largest English-speaking, technically qualified young workforce working at lower salary levels than their developed county counterparts. The advent of automated technologies ushers in challenges and opportunities for this young qualified workforce to step into future. This is the first study from India that deliberates on the “future of work” in India.

Srikant Nair

Papers

Explicating the future of work: perspectives from India