This week, we dive into the biggest conversations shaping the future of work—straight from our ​Future Work Alumni​. What’s top of mind for workplace leaders right now? What trends, challenges, and innovations are sparking debate?

​Phil Kirschner – The Workline is Here!​

Introducing The Workline, a newsletter that gives HR, IT, and RE/FM leaders actionable advice for navigating the complexities of modern work. Led by Phil Kirschner, an expert at the intersection of employee experience, tech strategy, and organizational effectiveness, The Workline offers real, candid insights to help you break through misaligned incentives and organizational siloes.

Phil’s experience at McKinsey, WeWork, and JLL informs a unique framework to guide clients towards a better operating system of work. With a passion for “above the line” expenses, future-forward roles, and “blurred lines” between organizations, Phil uses “___line” metaphors to help you understand complex concepts and apply them when it matters most.

🔥 Not for products. Or whitepapers. Or headlines. Or too-distant futures. Subscribe to The Workline today!​

​Antony Slumbers – AI's Blueprint for Future Work & Cities​

AI is revolutionizing industries by moving beyond traditional physical assets, driving growth through data, algorithms, and network effects. The shift from the Industrial Age’s emphasis on physical capital to the AI Age’s focus on customized, data-driven systems is reshaping everything from city infrastructures to workplaces. Cities and companies are starting to embrace modularity, learning-driven decision-making, and AI-powered continuous feedback loops. Real-world pioneers like Estonia, Singapore, and China are already demonstrating how AI can redefine urban planning and business models.

📆 Want to learn how AI will reshape your industry and future-proof your strategies? Don't miss Antony Slumbers’ exclusive live workshop, Navigating the Human-Machine Future HERE.

​Janet Pogue McLaurin: CRE Leaders' Workspace Priorities​

Janet highlights that in 2025, CRE leaders are redesigning workplaces, with 54% of CRE end-users remodeling in the past three years. 71% expect footprint changes in the next three years, with larger companies downsizing and smaller ones expanding. A shift to collaborative spaces is evident, with 66% of expanding companies prioritizing meeting rooms and team areas over individual workstations, while 25% of downsizing companies move toward unassigned seating.

The key priorities for CRE in 2025 are team productivity, work experiences, and sustainability, focusing on collaboration rather than office presence.

⁉️ Question: How will your company adapt its workspace to meet evolving employee needs and business goals?

​Molly Sands: Designing Workplaces for Culture and Connection​

In modern work, digital environments aren't just tools—they're where culture thrives. According to Molly Sands from Atlassian, the best digital spaces enable more than just tasks; they foster connection, belonging, and authentic self-expression.

Platforms like Slack make employees feel like they "arrive" at work, while traditional tools like email lack this personal touch. In the design of work systems, leaders must ask if their tools help culture shine through or obscure it.

⚒️ Take Action: Review your current digital tools and platforms to assess whether they help foster connection and culture!

​Alexandra Samuel: Boost Productivity with Custom AI Assistants​

Alexandra highlights the power of custom AI assistants to streamline work processes. From writing and project management to troubleshooting and strategic advice, these assistants help store repeated prompts, files, and instructions. Alex shows that anyone with no coding skills can create a personalized assistant to boost productivity and save time.

Key Points:

• AI Assistants for Frequent Tasks: Customize for writing, marketing, project management, and more.
• Easy Setup: No coding is required.
• Personalization: Tailor with specific instructions and context.
• Improve Over Time: Refine responses through feedback.

⚒️ Take Action: Start creating your own AI Assistant Team today and save time while improving efficiency!

​"Employee Appreciation Ideas" by Ashley Herd​

Employee Appreciation Day is tomorrow, March 7. To help make it meaningful, Ashley suggests these ideas:

• Announce a pay raise or promotion—it’s the most straightforward way to show appreciation.
• Offer paid time off for hourly employees.
• Send a personalized gift card based on something they enjoy—it shows you're paying attention.
• Fund a development opportunity they were planning to pay for themselves.
• Simply express gratitude with a heartfelt, specific "thank you"—personal acknowledgment is often the most valued gift.

⚒️ Take Action: Show appreciation to yourself first—acknowledge your hard work and successes before extending gratitude to your team.

​Tracy Brower: Why Gen Z is Key to Your Team’s Future​

If you’re a leader or a hiring manager, you’re probably struggling to find great talent, Tracy suggests that you should definitely hire Gen Z.

With fresh perspectives, resilience, and a natural comfort with technology, Gen Z offers unmatched value to any organization. They thrive on meaningful work, collaboration, and continuous personal development, making them an ideal fit for dynamic teams. By leveraging Gen Z’s strengths, companies can position themselves for long-term success and stay ahead of the competition.

⁉️ Question: How's your experience working with Gen Z, and how do you navigate their expectations?

​Anthony Onesto - Revolutionizing Performance Management with AI​

Anthony emphasizes how AI is revolutionizing performance management by analyzing "digital breadcrumbs" from tools like email and calendars, providing real-time insights into employee performance. This shift moves away from traditional reviews, offering continuous, data-driven feedback and personalized coaching. With AI, companies can track progress, personalize development, and identify team patterns, leading to improved performance and higher retention.

However, transparency, privacy, and human judgment are key as AI tools are implemented. Anthony encourages organizations to embrace AI to create more agile, effective performance management processes and support continuous employee growth.

⚒️ Take Action: Audit your current performance management processes to assess how AI can enhance feedback, streamline development, and improve overall employee engagement.

I follow and summarize the news that future-forward and people-centric leaders care about, so you don't have to.

This week:

​Women Still Face Barriers to Career Growth​

Despite women outperforming men in education—earning 59% of bachelor’s degrees and 63% of master’s degrees—they continue to fall behind in the workplace due to the “broken rung” effect.

• According to McKinsey, only 81 women are promoted to manager for every 100 men, and women remain underrepresented at every leadership level, with just 29% in the C-suite.
• The problem isn’t ambition—70% of women want promotions—but a lack of experience capital, the skills and opportunities gained on the job that drive long-term career success.
• Meanwhile, HiBob’s survey shows a disconnect between DEI rhetoric and reality, with fewer than 1 in 10 women having a formal mentor and only 36% feeling empowered at work.

As companies roll back DEI initiatives, experts like Megan Dalla-Camina warn that businesses failing to expand mentorship, offer flexible policies, and invest in women’s career growth will lose top talent.

Fixing this requires structural change, including sponsorship programs, transparent pay audits, and leadership development to ensure women gain the opportunities needed to advance.

​Adam Grant: The Future of Work is Agility Over Ability ​

Wharton psychologist Adam Grant argues that agility—not ability—is the new currency of success, as organizations navigate rapid technological and geopolitical shifts.

While soft skills like creativity, collaboration, and analysis are more crucial than ever, most companies still fail to measure or develop them effectively.

He warns against rigid corporate structures that stifle innovation, advocating instead for job crafting, flexible work models, and prioritizing "dot connectors" over "fact collectors."

Grant also challenges traditional workplace norms, calling for fewer meetings, a four-day workweek, and smarter hiring and promotion processes.

Can Agentic AI Prevent a ‘Trumpcession’?

The U.S. economy is showing signs of a "Trumpcession," with GDP contracting 2.8%, inflation rising to 3%, and analysts like Michael Burry and Jeremy Grantham predicting a stock market crash. Tariffs, layoffs, and economic uncertainty have only heightened concerns. However, while some brace for a downturn, others see an opportunity: agentic AI. Gartner also predicts that by 2029, 80% of common customer service issues will be resolved autonomously, slashing operational costs by 30%

​ServiceNow, Salesforce, and SAP are leading the adoption of agentic AI, with ServiceNow reporting a 52% reduction in complex case resolution time and Salesforce planning to roll out 1 billion AI agents by year-end. While Deloitte’s survey shows 26% of leaders are actively exploring AI agents, companies like Intuit and Asana are balancing automation with human oversight to prevent hallucinations and ensure ROI, emphasizing AI literacy and employee collaboration as critical success factors.

At the same time, Armis, Netskope, and Principal Financial are taking a cautious but strategic approach, deploying agentic AI while managing costs, security risks, and vendor flexibility.

✅ Quick Hits:

• ​Smarter Benefits for a Shifting Workforce: Employee benefits are evolving as companies adjust to a multi-generational workforce, AI-driven HR shifts, rising healthcare costs (+5.8% in 2025), and tighter pharmacy pricing scrutiny.
  • With five generations at work, flexible, voluntary benefits are gaining traction.
  • AI is reshaping HR beyond automation, enhancing engagement through data-driven decisions.
  • Rising healthcare costs are driving a shift toward preventative care and smarter spending analysis.
  • Meanwhile, pharmacy pricing reforms are prompting companies to reassess PBM contracts and explore cost-saving options.
• ​The AI Race Needs a Smarter Strategy: Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, Scale AI’s Alexandr Wang, and Dan Hendrycks warn against a "Manhattan Project" for AGI, citing risks of cyber retaliation from China and global instability.
  • Their "Superintelligence Strategy" paper advocates for defensive AI policies, proposing "Mutual Assured AI Malfunction" (MAIM) to preemptively disable adversarial AI threats.
  • Instead of racing for AGI dominance, they urge the U.S. to focus on cybersecurity, chip restrictions, and controlled AI development