Introduction
Following the last article where we discussed the impact of Augmented and Virtual Reality on industries and how technological advancement is changing the way businesses operate, it’s now imperative for us to discover the effect of this change on the people within these industries.
Here is a classic example of this effect: in 2008, there were about 114,000 total newsroom employees in the US. This number includes the five industries that produce news: newspaper, radio, broadcast television, cable and “other information services”. By 2020, that number had declined to about 85,000, a loss of about 30,000 jobs. It is worthy of note that this period is also characterized by the advent of social media.
The ease that technology has brought to many business processes implies that many workers might lose their jobs. While it is true that employees and creatives have a significant part to play in their evolution to maintain relevance, could employers play a role in balancing their reliance on technology and keeping their staff?
Here are the opinions of three creatives.
Employers can balance technology and staff engagement among software developers by prioritizing clear communication, providing training, involving employees in decision-making, offering flexibility, recognizing achievements, ensuring well-being, fostering autonomy, avoiding micromanagement, assigning meaningful tasks, balancing innovation and stability, organizing team-building activities, maintaining an open-door policy, and addressing burnout promptly. Adapting these strategies to the team's context helps create a positive work environment where technology enhances productivity while keeping staff motivated and committed.
I suggest from experience that management can keep track of evolving technologies and train staff with regard to building their skills even on the job.
Technology enhances productivity. Thus, to balance using technology and keeping their staff, employers should consider training their staff to be updated with current technology trends relating to their field. This, of course, will increase staff productivity and the company's growth. Also, they could get feedback from staff about their line of activities. Feedback is important to keep track of an employee's objectives. Finally, employers could conduct frequent research to improve staff services.
Hmm, I'd assume this use of technology here spans across the use of tech and tech platforms, and of course AI. All things being equal though I'd say Employers can balance using technology and keeping their staff by first understanding that both are important to achieve the best results, no matter how advanced a tech is, people still need to be onboard to either manage it or run checks. A human touch is still needed in most cases. So as employers get new tech for businesses and organizations, they need to ensure that their employees and staff are being trained and manage the tech effectively.
Conclusion
“Creative destruction.” That’s what Joseph Schumpeter, a highly regarded economist, called it in the 1940s. It’s what happens when technological progress improves many people’s lives at the expense of others. Though every industry is prone to it, employers can help to mitigate the negative effect of this advancement on their staff. It requires thoughtful training and providing space and scenarios for their team to evolve.
In the long run, this thoughtfulness will, in turn, benefit employers. With staff becoming more innovative and tech-savvy, their ideas will help to enhance the company’s operations, leading to greater profits.
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