Our latest musings on all things AQ and how to strengthen your own adaptability muscles!
In our exponential world, everything could (will) change tomorrow, and the pace of change is increasing
Companies have far more to gain by helping humans and AI to work together, rather than simply displacing human roles: ‘humans and AI actively enhance each other’s complementary strengths
Staying ahead of the curve is not just about responding to change, but predicting and influencing it.
The primary value drivers throughout the Third industrial revolution were the biological hegemony of survival of the fittest....
There’s nothing like a global pandemic to make VUCA personal and break our human addiction to certainty.
Futurists such as Ray Kurzweil have argued that technological changes are accelerating today at such....
The primary value drivers throughout the Third industrial revolution were the biological hegemony of survival of the fittest, and its economic analog in capitalism, that profits flow to the shareholders. Biologists, economists, and climatologists today suggest that as a species we did diversify through competitive advantage. However, we evolved by integrating through collaborative advantage to optimize the whole system.
I was introduced to the acronym VUCA in the early 2000s while writing my first book Perfect Labor Storm. After the convergence and accumulation of events that disrupted our lives in the past 18 months, I can’t think of a more fitting description than VUCA - Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous.
Futurists such as Ray Kurzweil have argued that technological changes are accelerating today at such unprecedented speed that it’s hard to even imagine what our world will look like in a decade. We could see more change in the next 10 years than we have in the previous 100. The World Economic Forum reports that 40% of jobs that exist today will not exist in 10 years. As we approach the 1-year anniversary of global lockdowns due to the Pandemic, it’s clear the world of work will never be the same. This pace of change is quickening, and that level of change and uncertainty can create a great deal of fear.
Futurists such as Ray Kurzweil have argued that technological changes are accelerating today at such unprecedented speed that it’s hard to even imagine what our world will look like in a decade. We could see more change in the next 10 years than we have in the previous 100. The World Economic Forum reports that 40% of jobs that exist today will not exist in 10 years. As we approach the 1-year anniversary of global lockdowns due to the Pandemic, it’s clear the world of work will never be the same. This pace of change is quickening, and that level of change and uncertainty can create a great deal of fear.
In general, when we talk about our rapidly changing world, we talk about humans and technology in isolation, as though the two are naturally separated, or worse as two opposing forces in a battle for supremacy. However, I believe technology is inert until we give it a purpose, and at it’s best, when augmented alongside humans, it can unlock opportunities and accomplish solutions never-before-possible. Technology has always had a symbiotic relationship with humankind, and informed the way we interact with the world around us.
Earlier this year, the BBC published a series of articles on the 101 ways worklife is changing today. One of the most interesting articles, by Lisa Leong, discussed adaptability quotient, and its importance in the modern workplace. In fact, Leong went so far as to describe AQ as the ‘X-factor for career success.’
Adaptability has been described by the Harvard Business Review as ‘the new competitive advantage’. 2018 LinkedIn data revealed that adaptability topped the top five soft skills that employers were looking for in new candidates.
With the rise of machine-learning, robotics, sensors, algorithms, and AI, it’s becoming clear that humanity cannot continue to thrive in the same way we used to. Everywhere, professions are being challenged and in some areas outright outmoded by technological innovations, leaving us with questions as to who we are, our very identity, and how we can make a difference in this ever-changing world.
The primary value drivers throughout the Third industrial revolution were the biological hegemony of survival of the fittest, and its economic analog in capitalism, that profits flow to the shareholders. Biologists, economists, and climatologists today suggest that as a species we did diversify through competitive advantage. However, we evolved by integrating through collaborative advantage to optimize the whole system.
In our exponential world, everything could (will) change tomorrow, and the pace of change is increasing, doubling in fact, in accordance with Moore’s law. Soon, we will approach the singularity, where the outcomes of change will become impossible to predict. How can we cope with this rapidly approaching moment of transformation?
The fourth industrial revolution is distinguished from the previous three because it acknowledges the interdependence and undeniable synergy between the quality of human life and the way work is accomplished.
I was introduced to the acronym VUCA in the early 2000s while writing my first book Perfect Labor Storm. After the convergence and accumulation of events that disrupted our lives in the past 18 months, I can’t think of a more fitting description than VUCA - Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous.
When you invest your time, energy, and trust in someone to lead, it can be painful to watch them go.
Staying ahead of the curve is not just about responding to change, but predicting and influencing it. The reality is that it’s not only technology that is rapidly changing our world, but the strategic by-products from access to tremendous amounts of information. We have more data than perhaps ever before in human history. A strange paradox exists; we hold an abundance of information on on the subject of nutrition and optimum human health, but we also have a crisis of health on our hands. At least in the West, where obesity levels are at an all time high (almost a third of adults in the UK are now clinically ‘obese’).
It is in the most extreme situations we witness the best and worst of humanity. But what makes us turn one way or another? Difficult situations, ones perceived outside of our control, are the moments in life when choosing how to show up creates waves of immeasurable impact. Impact on ourselves, our family, our community, our Nation and our planet.
In general, when we talk about our rapidly changing world, we talk about humans and technology in isolation, as though the two are naturally separated, or worse as two opposing forces in a battle for supremacy. However, I believe technology is inert until we give it a purpose, and at it’s best, when augmented alongside humans, it can unlock opportunities and accomplish solutions never-before-possible. Technology has always had a symbiotic relationship with humankind, and informed the way we interact with the world around us.
The primary value drivers throughout the Third industrial revolution were the biological hegemony of survival of the fittest, and its economic analog in capitalism, that profits flow to the shareholders. Biologists, economists, and climatologists today suggest that as a species we did diversify through competitive advantage. However, we evolved by integrating through collaborative advantage to optimize the whole system.