Space to Connect or Time to Hustle? The AI Productivity Conundrum.
We dig into whether the efficiency gains offered by artificial intelligence will create time to cultivate human connections, or simply more time to work. We suggest that workforce leaders can thoughtfully apply AI to realise the best of both realities.
This article builds on Natter's roundtable conversations with senior workforce leaders about AI and the future experience of work. Read the full report, co-authored with our partner, Deloitte Digital.
Over the past two years, AI has accelerated into a space accessible to everyone. The launch of tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney and Dall-E has brought AI out of the shadows and into the hands of people around the world. And so we find ourselves on the threshold of a new relationship with technology. One that raises the question of what it means for humans to thrive alongside AI and ‘get the most’ out of its implementation.
Organisations are increasingly exploring the use of AI in the workplace. From Natter’s roundtable discussion with 142 senior workforce leaders, co-hosted with our partner Deloitte Digital, 69% of 1:1 conversations cited ‘improved efficiency in routine tasks’ as the top hope for AI in the workplace. We learned that leaders are eager for AI to expedite routine tasks and remove the administrative burden for their employees. With an average of 62% of the workday lost to repetitive, mundane tasks, AI could offer significant time benefits if these hopes are realised.
Simultaneously, leaders we spoke with are optimistic that AI can enhance human connections. Over a third of roundtable conversations cited the ability of AI to unlock time for meaningful human interactions. But the reverse was also highlighted. To quote one workforce experience leader, "Does it really give you back time or does it create more capacity to do more?". If not apprehended, AI risks creating a time vacuum immediately filled by an increased workload, due to both existing habits and future business demands.
“Does it really give you back time or does it create more capacity to do more?"
Workforce experience leader
This leaves one question; how to maximise the productivity gains that AI offers while deepening genuine connections between colleagues?
The Meaning of 'Connection'
To be seen and understood by another person lies at the core of authentic human connection. On the surface, we’re more connected to each other than ever before. With technology woven into almost every aspect of our lives, we’ve come to expect connection at our fingertips through messaging apps and social media. However, the breadth of connection enabled by technology comes at the risk of depth.
The same is true of an increasingly scattered and hybrid workforce. Technology has enabled us to stretch our work beyond the confines of the office walls, and traditional working hours, granting individual employees greater autonomy over their schedule. While colleagues can feel within easy reach, through email and messaging platforms, moments of genuine 1:1 connection require more intentionality and can easily be neglected in favour of individual efficiency.
Moments of sincere connection do not follow one format. Connecting could be a 15-minute ‘virtual coffee’ to celebrate a colleague’s birthday. Connecting could also be a video call to discuss how to reposition an underperforming product, sharing previous experience and together building the strategy for the wider team. With a holistic view of what constitutes ‘connection’ we can reframe how this complements the productivity benefits of AI.
Quality Over Quantity
The efficiency gains offered by AI are undeniable. We already have access to tools that can code a new website in minutes and generate thousands of hyper-personalised adverts with minimal input. Leaning on AI to move through straightforward tasks at speed offers two potential upsides to organisational productivity:
- Increased quantity of outputs
- Better quality of outputs
While increasing the quantity of outputs may directly benefit the bottom line - growing the volume of work produced, while holding headcount - benefits to the bottom line rarely motivate the individual employee. Using the time created by AI to simply increase workload neglects the reality that more work is not always better work, and misses the opportunity to elevate the employee experience through human connection. By contrast, focusing on better quality of outputs centres the employee by maximising their contribution. Reorientating efforts towards complex projects will lead to more fulfilling work and deliver greater impact on business performance.
“[My] hopes are to streamline any administrative-heavy tasks [using AI] to free people up to do more creative, strategic, complex work.”
Workforce experience leader
This reorientation, enabled by AI, can open opportunities for meaningful human connection through collaboration, where the creation of high value work is matched by the benefit of new internal connections.
Next Steps for Workforce Leaders
AI is on course to fundamentally change the workforce experience. Leaders will have to navigate the change on behalf of their teams to set the parameters for this new technology. Existing AI products offer huge benefits to move through routine tasks at pace. What’s less straightforward is how the time it opens up gets filled. To simply prioritise increasing the volume of outputs is to miss the opportunity to nurture human connections between staff and fuel a sense of belonging within the organisation. Astute leaders will recognise that elevating employee productivity and enabling human connections are not mutually exclusive.
Viewing productivity through the lens of improved quality of outputs, leaders can use the time AI opens up to shift the focus towards higher value work. This is more rewarding for the individual employee, and for the organisation, and simultaneously provides greater opportunities for human connection through collaboration. Leaders should be cautious of AI platforms that emphasise efficiency gains with no mention of human connection. A thriving workforce is not exclusively built on outputs. Instead our newly fragmented ways of working raise the importance of AI tools that can both enhance productivity and facilitate authentic, cross-company connections.
