Skills are the new currency in the knowledge economy, bringing numerous advantages. A skills-based organizational model has been shown to create more inclusivity, maximize efficiency and improve the workforce experience. Employees gain more opportunities and job satisfaction in skills-based organizations, and data analyzed by BCG demonstrates the value of applying a skills-based approach throughout the talent lifecycle, from hiring to promotion to retention. Moreover, according to Deloitte, skills-based organizations are 63% more likely to achieve workforce and business results, like financial gains, innovation and customer satisfaction.
This marks a significant improvement over the traditional “jobs” model, which thrived in an era of slow change, distinct role definitions and hierarchical decision-making processes. Today, where required skills evolve in real-time, it is clear that a traditional jobs-based organizational model inhibits agility and innovation.
Transitioning from jobs to skills, then, is logical. However, just as traditional jobs could be criticized for their formality and rigid, top-down definitions, skills-based roles risk dehumanizing employees if reduced to mere lists of their parts, such as a series of tasks or projects. It is critical to maintain a human-centered approach when developing a skills-based operational model.
Risk Of Hyper-Specialization
Distributing tasks across various job titles or departments encourages shared ownership, innovation and agility but also risks hyper-specialization. When Adam Smith popularized the productivity benefits of the “division of labor” in the late 18th century, it was criticized for producing specialized workers detached from organizational or societal goals. That critique may seem almost quaint to the modern observer, for whom jobs have evolved into even more fragmented “division of tasks.” The risk is hyper-specialization and greater dissociation.
Aligned autonomy, popularized by Spotify and practiced in many organizations today, offers a powerful human-centered framework. This approach aligns employees around organizational goals and values, empowering autonomous teams to make decisions and execute tasks. Clear goals, autonomous ownership and a collaborative, transparent and trust-based culture—especially at the leadership level—are crucial. With these elements, hyper-specialization may still prevail, but its negative consequences can be mitigated while cultivating innovation, motivation and better decision-making.
Risk Of Under-Developing
As tasks become more distinct from roles, there is a risk that managers might over-task those with developed skills while neglecting others, leading to uneven management and missed growth opportunities. Personalized talent development is essential to maintain a human-centered focus.
Another promising approach is to offer skills development tied to purpose and impact. Programs like skills-based volunteering, like those run by my organization, provide purpose-driven experiential learning opportunities. Our data shows these engagements develop essential interpersonal skills like leadership, oral presentation and teamwork, as well as functional skills in marketing, finance and human resources. While upskilling employees, these engagements also support nonprofits in addressing operational challenges and offer employees a personally rewarding way to connect with a community or social cause. At a time when connecting outside of work through volunteering in a community is at an all-time low, these programs are a great way to offer human connection and upskilling at the same time.
Risk Of Dehumanization Through AI
No analysis of the future of work would be complete without considering AI. The transition to skills-based roles makes it easier to isolate routine tasks for AI. While efficiency and cost-saving benefits are clear, concerns about job displacement, ethical considerations and skills erosion persist.
AI brings computational power, speed and scalability to the equation. Those are powerful, but they are useless in a vacuum. Humans contribute necessary cognitive abilities, creativity and emotional intelligence to AI to stretch to new limits of innovation and productivity. If humans “co-work” with AI, the result will be augmented human capabilities rather than displaced humans. Ensuring there is a human in the room, or “co-intelligence,” as Ethan Mollick of the Wharton School calls it, is the key principle for using AI to radically transform our world without risking dehumanization.
The Future Of Work Is Now
Will the shift to skills-based organizations further dehumanize work? It doesn’t have to. By prioritizing a human-centered approach, we can ensure that the move from “jobs” to “skills” not only drives efficiency and innovation but also maintains the humanity of work. The future of work will continue to be driven by technological advances, but putting people first and creating a more inclusive, adaptive and healthy workforce will be the key to making it a future worthy of our shared humanity.
Follow Leila Saad on LinkedIn.
For more social impact content, follow Common Impact on LinkedIn and sign-up for our monthly newsletter. Ready to learn more about skills-based volunteering? Contact us.