Tag: FutureOfWork

When COVID-19 emptied offices in 2020, remote work wasn't a carefully designed workplace strategy. It was an emergency response. Kitchen tables became desks, meetings moved online, and businesses adapted faster than many thought possible. In the years that followed, flexibility became a defining feature of many workplaces. But for some, the pendulum is swinging back globally once again. Amazon introduced a five-day office expectation in January 2025.

Read our exclusive cover story titled Mission focus – does AI enable strategy or create distraction? by Steven Ambrose, CEO, Strategy Worx Consulting, plus a host of other topical management articles written by professionals, consultants and academics.

Neural implants, which connect the human brain directly to external devices, are the leading emerging technology that global workers expect to see in the workplace by 2050, according to our new research. The study, "IWG's Work Reimagined: The Office of 2050", summarises findings from global HR leaders and employees. It highlights how rapidly advancing technologies are expected to transform the workplace over the next 25 years.

Somewhere between the third Wi-Fi troubleshooting call of the week and an unnecessary standoff over the cleaning rota, South Africa’s most capable leaders are quietly becoming something they never applied for: facilities managers. A new trend has emerged in 2026. It goes by the name of conscious unbossing. I think it is about time we embraced it locally.

During my time working at South African Breweries (SAB), I watched young graduates arrive on the factory floor holding hard-earned chemistry degrees. They possessed brilliant theoretical minds. They understood molecular bonds and complex reactions on paper. Yet, when a critical machine on the production line broke down, those degrees often could not get the line moving again.

The world of work is changing faster than our education systems can track, which means preparing for a single career or a fixed set of skills is, paradoxically, one of the least effective strategies a young person can adopt today. The most important shift is to think about careers as journeys rather than destinations.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping the professional world. It is transforming how businesses operate and how employees remain competitive. AI is no longer a futuristic concept discussed in boardrooms, universities and science fiction movies. It has quietly moved into our offices, our workflows and increasingly, our decision-making processes. Whether we realise it or not, AI is transforming the modern workplace.

Much of the current conversation around Artificial Intelligence (AI) focuses on technology choices. Organisations ask which platform to use. They also ask which model works best. In addition, they debate which tools will replace existing systems. Across boardrooms and IT departments, leaders race to decide on AI platforms, copilots, automation layers and infrastructure upgrades.

As Stats SA's latest labour market data shows graduate unemployment climbing, we argue that the ability to keep learning has become South Africa's most valuable workplace skill. South Africa's latest labour data raises an uncomfortable question. If even graduates are struggling to find work, is a qualification on its own still enough to build a career on?

There is a narrative building around artificial intelligence (AI) that deeply concerns me. It is a narrative rooted in fear. People fear being replaced. They fear being left behind. They fear not understanding the technology. They also fear experimenting and getting it wrong. Yet, from where I sit, AI is not something we can afford to fear from the sidelines. Instead, we need to engage with it. We need to learn from it, play with it, challenge it, shape it and adopt it.