What does the “Future Manager” look like?

As we stand on the brink of a new era of workplace dynamics, the role of a manager is undergoing a profound transformation. Today, we are talking about the manager of tomorrow who embraces innovation, adapts to change quickly, fosters collaboration and is forward-thinking. And, doing everything at 3-5x her current speed.

Most of the daily activities will be data-driven in real time and these decisions and actions(wherever there is a high degree of confidence) will be automated. This will increase efficiency immensely and help buy the time to focus on the most relevant activities.

This would help her be organized to a great extent and would just have to push the action button to perform actions such as the most relevant sales call, identifying which customer is most likely to convert, which processes will lead to the most significant yield and easy capitalization of opportunities.

What are the tools at their disposal?

AI assistants: Managers may have AI-powered assistants that manage their schedules, analyze their work patterns and prioritize tasks. Moreover, optimal strategies based on data and predictive analytics might move the needle from strategization to direct execution.

Virtual Reality workspaces: VRs have been the new obsession of big tech for the last few years to the extent that Facebook named its parent Meta and bet the future on its Metaverse. While it has not picked up since, not far from today, managers could utilize VR environments to collaborate with their teams or interact with clients in an immersive virtual setting regardless of the physical location. Also, currency and virtual goods exchange could happen in this environment itself.

Augmented reality interfaces: Jarvis caught the fantasy of most millennials when we saw Tony Stark interacting with his physical environment to get instant access to the enemy’s coordinates. Tech is paving the way for that as AR interfaces would help a manager access relevant data and interact with 3D hologram images to perform her daily tasks. Let’s revisit our fav Iron Man scene real quick.

Neurotechnology for focus and productivity: Recently we saw a paraplegic playing games like Chess and Age of Empires using a chip implanted in his brain. In the next decade or so, these devices could be used to provide real-time feedback and stimulation to optimize brain function during critical tasks. Moreover, with this enhanced cognitive performance managers will have much firmer control over their lives.

Self-organizing teams: Well, this would be an important pain point solved if teams could self-organize by autonomously assigning tasks, optimizing workflows and adapting to changing priorities based on performance metrics and resources. With this increased time independence, the manager can focus on his topmost priorities.

Efficient transportation: Self-driving cars will buy everyone those additional hours we generally waste honking in the traffic. While the tech for autonomous vehicles has started to roll out already, in 2-3 decades a completely self-driving car would be all around us. Also, urban air mobility(UAM) will enable on-demand short-distance aerial transportation bypassing ground congestion and providing rapid point-to-point connectivity.

What is currently happening to make this future a reality?

The advent of conversational AI and natural language processing: We have ushered into the era of conversational AI, enabling computers to understand, process and generate natural language in a human manner. This is increasingly improving with new models and versions coming out every day. OpenAI, Anthropic and all the big techs are already heavily invested in building their Large Language Models as of today.

Advancements in robotics: All big tech companies are betting on advanced robotics and even humanoids. Right from Optimus by Tesla to Atlas(now the electric one) by Boston Dynamics, the tech looks to become ubiquitous in a few years.

Augmented reality: Not so long back, Apple launched the Vision Pro headset which received acclaim from users for its interface, design and ease of use. While this is just version 1, we assume if the versions advance at the same pace as the Apple iPhones, in the next 20 years AR could be a regular part of our lives

Hologram communication: A 3D hologram doesn’t look like you—it is you. Holographic Communication provides a real-time, detailed capture of human emotions and expressions, transmitted on today’s network. Ericsson is already at the forefront of this today. With widespread adoption and tech advancements- meetings, offices and classes would never be the same.

Brain chip implants: Elon Musk’s Neuralink is bringing science fiction into reality with chips that can enhance cognitive abilities and help with a bunch of activities blurring the lines between a human brain and an advanced computer. It’ll be interesting to witness this in the next 20 years as we see the implant might lead to complex ethical, social and practical considerations.

Are you ready to embrace the change?

“The Future Manager” with all these technologies backing him, would be extra-ordinary in terms of productivity, innovation and organisational performance. Having said that, it will bring in complex challenges in terms of adaptability and lifelong commitment to learning and development. Empathy would be as essential as ever and continuing the decision-making and leadership to be human-centric will be critical.

Also, socio-economic factors will play a crucial role. There is a major digital divide and technological disparity that exists today. We might see the manager in affluent areas getting technologies at their disposal further widening the bridge and adding to the disparity. We must make sure to provide additional resources to bridge this digital divide and ensure equitable access to tech for everyone.

Finally, managers need to start preparing today for the future. We must welcome innovation and experimentation with an open spirit by investment in education and lifelong learning. Also, this would need all hands on deck with academia, industry, government and civil society coming together to address the challenges and drive technological innovation.