Re:Just own the damn robots
by mdorazio on Tuesday October 17, 2017 @10:31PM
(#15496456)
> we simply didn't rehire for positions when someone retired because the digitization hadn't eaten whole workflows but only 5 minutes here and there
I think this is a very important part of automation in the knowledge worker sector that people often miss. Automation doesn't have to get a single person fired to lead to high unemployment, it just has to make managers stop and ask, "do we really need to replace that person who left?". I've been seeing the same thing as you over the last decade with companies I've consulted with where headcount gets pared down here and there every year, and the remaining employees are expected to use more technology tools and wear more hats to fill in the gaps.
I think this is a very important part of automation in the knowledge worker sector that people often miss. Automation doesn't have to get a single person fired to lead to high unemployment, it just has to make managers stop and ask, "do we really need to replace that person who left?". I've been seeing the same thing as you over the last decade with companies I've consulted with where headcount gets pared down here and there every year, and the remaining employees are expected to use more technology tools and wear more hats to fill in the gaps.