Everybody has a ‘work story’ – what we do for a living and our career journey. 

Researchers have identified seven dominant narratives shaping the future of work. Which of these will define your journey?

I’ll explore these narratives, look for signals to support them, and ask whether they really matter.

According to Christopher Booker, there are seven basic plots that underpin almost every novel, movie, or even TV advert we encounter. Imagine your career as one of these archetypes:

Are you on a quest for purpose, overcoming challenges, or writing a rags-to-riches story?

We can’t predict the future, but we can predict your prediction

In the study researchers asked experts to rank the likelihood of predictions and the year they were most likely to happen.  They landed on the sequence of events which included:-

2044: Surveillance societies become the norm worldwide

2051: Governments introduce universal basic income

2063: Technocratic elites start colonizing other planets

2065: All human qualities are surpassed by intelligent technology

So, nothing to worry about with these scenarios!

The researchers found that…

This was an interesting finding - but maybe not so surprising. What I found particularly insightful was the authors summary of seven identifiable narratives on the future of work.

Seven Competing Narratives about the Future of Work

The authors identified competing narratives in terms of seven different schools, and below I have illustrated, amplified and added my take on each of them.  

1 - Dataism  - Trust the Algorithm

The Story: Data and algorithms dominate workplace decision-making, replacing human intuition.

Signals: Algorithmic management at Amazon warehouses. The rise of Digital Workers.

Extreme Future: The Quantified Worker – our personal AI agent tells us what to eat for breakfast based on our sleep patterns and work schedule…

My Take:  This is assumes data is neutral and infallible. Without scrutiny, we risk building systems that reinforce biases and strip away human agency. We will see more Quantified Workers, but only at the speed of trust.

2 – Exterminism - The Robots Take Over

The Story: Automation leads to catastrophic job losses, creating a dystopian future.

Signals: Hollywood’s first AI strike highlighted fears of automation in creative industries. Studies predict millions of displaced jobs by 2030.

Extreme Future: By 2050, mass unemployment dominates society. Governments scramble to create universal job replacement programs.

My Take: This assumes humanity is static. History shows we adapt, ecosystems evolve, new   industries emerge, and societies recalibrate. We must push for systems that prioritise fairness to prevent such extremes.

3 -  Re/Upskilling - Learn or Be Left Behind

The Story: Lifelong learning becomes a necessity to stay employable.

Signals: Singapore’s SkillsFuture framework for workers over 40. The rise of online education platforms like Coursera.

Extreme Future: Education becomes AI-driven, with personalized microlearning tailored to real-time job market demands.

My Take: Re/upskilling feels less like a narrative and more like a universal feature of all the others.

4 – Augmentation - Humans and Machines in Harmony

"The machine does not isolate man from the great problems of nature but plunges him more deeply into them." – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

The Story: Technology enhances human capabilities rather than replacing them.

Signals: AI-powered surgical assistants improving precision. AI tools analysing case law.

Extreme Future: Brain-machine interfaces allow people to solve problems while dreaming.

My Take: This is a hopeful and practical vision. Machines as collaborators, not competitors, should be our goal. However if only a few benefit, augmentation won’t fulfil its promise. 

5 - The Singularity - When AI Surpasses Us

Story: AI surpasses human intelligence, transforming society.

Signals: Futurists like Ray Kurzweil predict this by 2045. Philosophical debates about AGI dominate ethics boards.

Extreme Future: Super-intelligent AI demands citizenship. People upload their minds to live digitally.

My Take: Fascinating but speculative - let’s first agree what ‘intelligence’ means first?

6 - Job Destruction - The Death of Low-Skilled Work

The Story: Automation disproportionately impacts low-skilled jobs, exacerbating inequality.

Signals: Retail jobs disappear with cashier-less stores like Amazon Go. Autonomous trucking pilots in the U.S.

Extreme Future: Governments issue ‘transition stipends’ to keep displaced workers afloat.

My Take: Automation is inevitable, but inequality is a choice. This narrative is compelling but incomplete. It doesn’t account for the historical resilience of economies in creating new types of work, or how labour markets unbundle tasks and then rebundle.

7 - Work Deintensification - The Age of Leisure

The Story: Technology reduces work hours, leading to more leisure and creativity.

Signals: Four-day workweek trials around the World [add link to my critique]. Advocates like Andrew Yang champion Universal Basic Income.

Extreme Future: By 2051, UBI is standard, and governments mandate digital detoxes.

My Take: Culturally appealing, but will we stop tying our identities to work? This is the utopian narrative I want to believe in, but the practicalities are daunting. Work deintensification would require significant cultural shifts and systemic reforms, which feel far off in many parts of the world.

You can read the full paper with a link at the end of the article.

Poll: What Narrative Do You Believe In Most?

📊 Which narrative about the future of work resonates most with you?

1. Dataism: Algorithms dominate decision-making, sidelining human intuition.

2. Exterminism: Robots and AI lead to catastrophic job losses.

3. Re/Upskilling: Lifelong learning is necessary to remain employable.

4. Augmentation: Humans and machines collaborate in harmony.

5. The Singularity: AI surpasses human intelligence, reshaping society.

6. Job Destruction: Automation erodes low-skilled jobs, deepening inequality.

7. Work Deintensification: Technology ushers in shorter workweeks and UBI.

The Next Chapter of Research

While the study offers a useful framework, it’s not the complete story, as the authors admit. First, it’s based entirely on Belgian media, so they didn’t include Workforce Futurist! The seven narratives aren’t entirely mutually exclusive. E.g. Augmentation can be seen optimistically as an empowering narrative, while sceptics might question its feasibility or equitable access.

The Future of Work is What We Make It

When it comes to shaping our future work story, it is far too easy to become distracted by the many competing narratives out there.

The media presents a very narrow view of the future of work – the perspective is too local, or doesn’t reflect economic history, and lacks context and imagination. In other words it is wrong!

They are also too manty fear-based narratives.

As I mentioned in my article looking at the past 250 years featuring Carlota Perez’s research, a golden age for work will only happen when there are positive visions.

The seven narratives are not mutually exclusive—you don’t have to pick just one.

For Workforce Futurists, I would suggest :-

• Understand and critique the dominant narratives in your industry

• Shape your own narrative

• Invest in flexible strategies for the future which,

• links to your own financial independence, health and welfare.

The question here is not

“What will happen?” but rather:

“What kind of future do we want to create?”

What’s your narrative?

Tell me in the comments, or hit reply.

Future Reading

• Dries, Nicky & Luyckx, Joost & Rogiers, Philip. (2023). Imagining the (Distant) Future of Work. Academy of Management Discoveries. You can download the full PDF article here

• My views on five pathways towards building a better future of work - which of the 7 narratives dominate? 🤔

• Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative? Fisher, M. (2009) This book critiques neoliberalism, framing the inevitability of current economic structures, and contributes to the understanding of the "There Is No Alternative" (TINA) mindset reflected in the narrative of Re/Upskilling.

• The Worlds I See: Curiosity, Exploration, and Discovery at the Dawn of AI" (2023) Fei-Fei Li. In this book, Dr. Li delves into her journey in AI, she advocates for AI systems designed to augment human capabilities rather than replace them.

• Future of Employment: How Susceptible Are Jobs to Computerisation?  Frey, C. B., & Osborne, M. A. (2013) This foundational paper examines the susceptibility of occupations to automation - influencing the somewhat flawed narratives of Exterminism and Job Destruction.

Writing the next chapter of my future,

Andy