Erica Orange

Erica’s Presentations:

• Challenge core thinking, and get people to see the world (and their industries) in completely new ways;
• Identify trends that have a direct impact on your organization;
• See how emerging issues affect your organization; and
• Put change in context so that you can better deal with it – and profit from it.

AI, Work & the Evolution of Human Labor:

One particular area of focus has been the evolving role of humans in an age of artificial intelligence (AI). In the last couple of decades, the expectations, risks, challenges – all of these have greatly escalated. From this, one fundamental question emerges: How will humans be economically relevant in a world that is rapidly being disintermediated by advanced technology? Increasingly, it is not just about work, but about the evolution of human purpose, passion and meaning. It is also about future-proofing workers so that they have the necessary skills and competencies to compete for jobs that we cannot even begin to imagine today. This is highlighted by “The Competency Tree,” a proprietary framework for understanding the future of human-based labor.

Generational Compression: Understanding Cybrids
Another area of focus is on generational trends – particularly from a values and attitudes perspective. Generations have long been grouped in birth year cohorts of 15-20 years. While generations, by their very definition, are chronological groupings, they are now seemingly refreshing every two-to-three years. Technology is changing so rapidly, that kids only a few years apart struggle to have the same cultural and technological frames of reference. Many companies have been clued into millennials (Gen Y) for quite some time. But quickly coming up behind them is Gen Z. But a better way to define this generation might be through its relationship with technology. Today’s youth are not just “digital natives” – they are Cybrids – cyber hybrids, who have a fully symbiotic relationship with the digital world from the moment they were born. Understanding what makes this generation tick is critical for understanding retention & recruitment, advertising/marketing, education/learning, etc.

Virtual Presentations: Our COVID-19 Reality
The world seems almost dystopian in nature, and understandably so. Not only are we living in extraordinary times, but we are living at a time when adopting extraordinary ways of thinking, particularly about the future, becomes a growing imperative. Specific predictions are almost always difficult (if not impossible) to get right. Even in a world of big data, unforeseen and disruptive events have the potential to change the trajectory of everything – the systems, careers, and lives – we have collectively grown accustomed to. Such is the case right now. Thus, for any public or private enterprise operating in today’s complex environment, the need for foresight becomes not just a strategic priority, but one of strategic urgency.

As we look to the future of work, some key questions to consider include:

How will COVID-19 speed up the use of robots to replace human workers?
How will companies expand how they use robots to increase social distancing?
How will COVID-19 change perceptions of trust?
How will the fast-tracking of digital transformations impact the future of work?
What might some of the biggest lessons and takeaways be when the dust settles?
What are some of the “silver linings”/opportunities that may emerge from the first truly acute worldwide crisis in generations? How do we begin to reimagine our businesses, products, services and systems?