Hello, and welcome to another episode of the Working Conversations podcast, where we talk all things leadership, business, communication, and trends in organizational life. I'm your host, Dr. Janel Anderson.

What will the workplace look like as 2025 unfolds? Well, as I'm sure you know, I've got some predictions. Here's where the future of work is headed. In 2025, hybrid work finally normalizes and becomes the standard. Second, generative AI isn't just a tool.It's reshaping how we work every day and amid all of this tech. Third, there's a new focus on bringing humanity back into the workplace. Sound intriguing?

Well, in this episode of Working Conversations, I'm diving into these top three trends that I see shaping the future of work in the year ahead. Now, if there's one thing we know about work, it's that it's always evolving. Predictions can be tricky, especially when the landscape shifts as quickly as it has in recent years. But by examining the data, listening to the concerns of employees and leaders, and keeping a pulse on global trends, we can start to see the patterns emerge that will shape our future. In today's episode, we're exploring the three major workplace trends that I'm predicting for 2025.

The normalization of hybrid work, the mainstreaming of generative AI, and the rise of a new focus on humanity in the workplace. Now, before we jump in with this year's predictions, let's recap my predictions from last year. My predictions were that hybrid work becomes the norm. Sound familiar? That there's a focus on employee well being that intensifies and that meetings become revolutionized by artificial intelligence, AI and automation. So how did I do on last year's predictions? Well, I jumped the gun on the first one. The fight for return to the office went on much longer than I expected it to. Hence the same prediction leading my charge again for 2025.

Now we did see more of an emphasis on mental health and employee well being. I think this is still an ongoing area that organizations are working through, balancing employees needs with the impact on the bottom line because additional benefits and programs are not cheap and organizations are figuring out where their dollars have the most impact on employee health and well being. So while I think we did see significant focus on that, it's continuing to unfold as 2025 goes along.

And for prediction number three, I'm sure most of you listening were in meetings at some point this year where an AI bot took the meeting minutes, offered transcription services, and maybe even prompted you with some ideas on how to contribute to the meeting. AI took some of the drudgery out of our meeting and meeting follow up and that is absolutely here to stay. All right, now let's jump into my 2025 predictions.

Prediction number one. Hybrid work becomes the norm again. Sounds like an echo from last year and humbly, I was off by a year on this one. In 2024, the workplace conversation was dominated by return to office mandates.

Companies like Amazon drew intense criticism for their rigid policies with CEO Andy Jassy mandating return to the office five full days a week. Now these move sparked intense backlash, highlighting the growing disconnect between leadership priorities and employees expectations. And you heard me talk a lot about that this past year on the podcast and again, I don't think that's something that's going to go away. We're still going to hear some of that backlash against the return to office and companies are going to continue to shake out how this is going to unfold for them. Now, employees overwhelmingly have made their preferences clear. Flexibility is no longer a perk, it's a baseline expectation. A recent report from Gallup shows that 50% of employees now see hybrid work as a long term arrangement and they don't think that their employers are going to renege on them like has been the case in the past. Now that's a big deal.

It signals a shift from hybrid being a temporary sort of pandemic era solution to it becoming the new status quo for of course, roles that can be done remotely. And as we know and we've explored on this podcast, not every job can be done remotely. And that presents its own set of challenges in organizational life. But hybrid work is evolving. Now the early hybrid models often followed a one size fits all approach. Entire teams would come into the office on specific days creating uniform schedules. And while this made coordination easier, it often ignored individual needs. Now in 2025, I predict that we're going to see a more personalized approach where hybrid policies are more tailored to the individual needs of employees, not necessarily the organization of the whole.

Now I think there will still be some negotiation of that at the team level and even at that manager to employee level. But this personalized model could mean more flexibility for, let's say parents who need to manage school drop offs, or for employees who work best non traditional hours. And you know, those preferences matter. And it's a recognition that productivity does not hinge on everyone being in the office at the same time. Even though there are some advantages to that. There are other advantages as well to having people have the schedule that they want and feel that certain sense of autonomy and control over their work lives. Now with this increased flexibility of course comes some challenges and primary among them is ensuring effective communication and collaboration. Now hybrid and remote environments can create these silos where teams struggle to stay aligned with one another.

And you heard me talk about that not too long ago on episode 190 when I discussed the benefits of a hive mentality at work when we can overhear bits of conversations and gather more context almost by osmosis. And I'll link that episode up in the show notes in case you missed it, because there really are some tremendous benefits of being together. To address the need for more effective communication and collaboration in the hybrid work environment, I foresee a rise in the adoption of core hours. Now, core hours, or specific blocks of time when all employees are expected to be available, provide a shared window for meetings, brainstorming, decision making and all types of collaboration. And this structure balances flexibility with the need for synchronous collaboration. I know some organizations already do this, but I think it will become more mainstream as 2025 unfolds and hybrid work really does normalize. Now we're also seeing technology play a pivotal role in supporting hybrid work collaboration tools like Slack and Microsoft, Team Teams and Zoom are continually evolving with features designed to mimic the spontaneity of in office interactions. So expect to see more innovation in this space as hybrid work solidifies its place in the new norm.

For my prediction, number two, it is that generative AI goes mainstream. Now, generative AI has been one of the most talked about technologies of the past few years, but 2025 is the year when it's going to go fully mainstream. A McKinsey report highlights that nearly 50% of all work activities can now be automated at some level. Now this doesn't just save companies money, it allows employees to focus on higher value tasks that are more strategic, more creative, and really more personally fulfilling. But let's be clear, automation doesn't necessarily remove humans from the equation entirely. In fact, it heightens the need for human oversight and expertise. AI is excellent at handling repetitive, data driven tasks, but it still requires people to guide its application, interpret its outputs, and ensure its ethical use. Now take marketing for example.

Generative AI tools like ChatGPT can craft compelling copy or social media posts in seconds, but it takes a marketer's intuition and understanding of brand voice to refine and improve those messages. Similarly, in software development tools like GitHub, Copilot can generate code, but developers still need to debug and optimize it. And experienced design engineers still need to make sure that that code absolutely fits the user's use case and helps make them make their lives easier instead of harder.

Now in 2025, we'll see organizations adopting more sophisticated and intentional processes, using early adopters experimented with AI in isolated functions, automating customer service responses or generating reports. But now AI is becoming embedded in departments and it's being used in layers. One AI tool might be first. One AI tool might be great at making a first pass of some data generation, while another AI tool will take that data and put it into a more readable report format. Now in HR, AI is revolutionizing recruitment by identifying the best candidates faster than traditional methods.

And I mean to be fair, and you've heard me talk about this on the podcast, HR has been using AI for years. In healthcare, it's analyzing patient data to recommend treatment plans, and it's also been for years analyzing patient data to against other large sets of data to identify anomalies, especially in things like reading MRI scans and so forth. Now in all of these use cases, AI is analyzing large amounts of data, but really then it is up to humans to review that analysis and make the decisions accordingly. So the AI might analyze your MRI against a bunch of other Data sets of MRIs of same parts of the body, but it's up to the radiologist to then look at the findings and see if there's a there there to see if there's an anomaly that really is something. So it's not cutting humans out of the equation entirely, it's just automating the parts that can be automated and giving humans a jumpstart on making data driven decisions. Now this mainstreaming of AI is also sparking a renewed focus on upskilling. Employees need to learn how to use AI and how to work along AI and how to work alongside AI effectively. Skills like discernment, knowing when to trust AI and when to rely on human judgment instead are becoming critical.

So are creativity and adaptability as workers are called upon to use AI in innovative ways. Now the organizations that thrive in 2025 will be those that view AI not as a replacement for people, but as a tool that augments human potential.

And now trend number three or prediction number three, a new reckoning of humanity at work. As automation and AI become more pervasive, they're prompting organizations to ask A profound question, what does it mean to be human at work? This question is sparking a reckoning, especially among forward thinking companies. Many are realizing that as technology takes over those routine tasks, it's creating an opportunity and a responsibility to focus on the human side of work. One way that this is playing out is through a renewed emphasis on in person connection. Organizations are investing in team building, retreats, on site workshops, and even casual gatherings to foster relationships. Now, these events aren't just nice to haves, they're a strategic response to the isolation that many employees feel in a hybrid or remote work environment.

Now, as part of my predicting this as a trend in 2025, part of this is based on how I earn my income as a keynote speaker. I was called on increasingly in the last quarter of 2024 to be the headline speaker for events like this, to draw people into the office and to share ideas from the stage about how to meaningfully reconnect. My two most popular keynotes, Reconnecting in a Disconnected World and Reviving Humanity in an Age of AI, sparked conversation and connection amongst people who were gathered together at these in person events.

Now we're also seeing workplaces redesign their physical spaces to prioritize connection. Instead of rows of desks and cubicles and doors with offices that close, offices are being reimagined as hubs for collaboration and community, more likely to look like a co working space than a traditional office environment. So open lounges, brainstorming areas and spaces for spontaneous interactions are becoming the norm. And increasingly people are figuring out finally how to use these spaces effectively to get work done, balancing that need for collaboration and connection with others with their need for focus time. Now, at the leadership level, there is a growing recognition of the importance of emotional intelligence and that comes back to being human at work.

Leaders are being trained to cultivate empathy, build trust, and create environments where employees feel valued for more than just their output. The organizations who are doing this the most are going to attract and retain the best talent. They're prioritizing leadership training on these things and that's fostering a growth mindset, emotional intelligence, and truly generating connections across the organization. And for many leaders, it doesn't come naturally, especially because they're so busy with everything else that they're doing that a little training can go a long way to make those leaders dial back in to really understanding and supporting the human element in the workplace.

Now, mental health is another critical piece of this trend. Organizations are finally taking mental health Seriously, not just as a benefit, but as a core part of their employee experience. You've heard me talk about this on the podcast before. Again, initiatives like the US Surgeon General's Framework for Workplace Mental Health and well Being, which emphasized psychological safety and belonging.And I did a whole podcast episode on that a while back. We'll link that up in the show notes too. Well, they're becoming more widely adopted now, again, as one of my predictions last year on mental health and well being becoming more core to the workplace.

This still comes into play this year as leaders and employees alike reclaim their human connections and really explore what it means to be human at work, especially in the midst of all the technology and automation we've got going on now. This focus on humanity isn't just good for employees, it's good for business. Research consistently shows that companies with high levels of employee engagement and well being outperform their peers. And you've heard that here on this podcast, no doubt, as well as on pretty much every media channel that's out there. It's research from Gallup and their counterparts that share how effective organizations become and how much employee engagement raises when that focus on well being and connection happen in the workplace.

Now, looking ahead, I believe the most successful organizations in 2025 will be those that use technology to enhance human connection. Connection, not replace it. All right my friends, so there you have it.

My three predictions for the workplace in 2025. Number one, hybrid work becomes the norm again. Or still number two, generative AI goes mainstream and really gets integrated into the work instead of kind of tacked on. And number three, there is a new reckoning of humanity at work. Now be sure to stay in touch with me throughout 2025 and let me know how these are playing out in your world at work.

And be sure to tune in next week when I'll be talking about the key skills that will help you get ahead in 2025. Whether you want a promotion or you want to become a better leader, or you want to simply become more effective in your current role, you won't want to miss out on hearing about the key skills that you need to develop in 2025. All right My friends, thanks for joining me on today's episode of Working Conversations. If this topic resonated with you, or if you have ideas for future episodes, I would love to hear from you. As always, stay curious, stay informed, and stay ahead of the curve. Tune in next week for another insightful exploration of the trends shaping our professional world.

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