Page 51 - FDI Alliance International Magazine. Spring 2021 Digital Interactive Issue

As work becomes more virtual, another aspect of technology comes So, could machine-based decision-making be the solution to eliminating
into play as well. Artificial Intelligence. As more and more of the world’s egregious and costly errors pertaining to the “poor” (or emotionally-based)
processes become automated, will human jobs be threatened? One thing decisions made by humans? Could human decisions be, at some point,
is for sure, AI has been increasing. And at an alarmingly fast rate. removed from the equation entirely? And if so, is that the direction we want
to head in?
AI has done a great job aggregating and integrating data in many ways.
Automating processes has saved human beings the time and effort As the AI field debates the value in, and tries to find ways to incorporate
associated with doing certain tasks themselves. What machines still can’t do pulling in emotional intelligence, one thing is certain. If decisions are to be
however, is think and feel like humans do. And those are key components in automated, there is another important element that is sorely missing in the
the human decision-making process. process. That element is CQ. But what is CQ?

The inability to account for emotional intelligence is a big barrier. Machines CQ is cultural intelligence. It is great that machines can aggregate data,
process and analyze massive amounts of data, however they must also but more capabilities are needed. Machines must be equipped with the
account for the judgement that humans have. They must be able to ability to understand and account for cultural differences and preferences.
understand how decisions will affect people and corporations, and use Furthermore, they must learn to aggregate and present the data in ways that
foresight in order to predict the likely consequences and results that may are culturally relevant to their audience. Otherwise, all effort will be wasted,
occur if that decision is made. along with the time that went into the process.
We want machines that think and act in human ways so that we can free up When we consider the combination of a hybrid work-from-home / work-
our time and focus on other tasks and activities, don’t we? in-person model and couple it with the extraordinary advances in artificial
intelligence that are yet to come, specifically involving CQ, we see a very
Research suggests that there are two systems of the brain involved in making interesting future. With capabilities that may very well far surpass what
decisions. The first, the emotional side of the brain, tends to react rather than anyone currently believes is possible. And the capacity to capture more data
respond. It appears to be the side of the brain involved in decisions that are and present it in ways never seen before. From anywhere in the world. To
made quickly and without much thought (although the subconscious mind anywhere in the world. Scary to some. Exciting to others. THIS is where we’re
handles automatic decisions made such as breathing). And the second part headed. THIS is the future.
is the logical one. This part of the brain seems to kick in when people have
time to think about their decisions. To step back, analyze all information
THE FUTURE OF WORK, AI & CQ available, all components of the scenario, and the impact – the potential CROSS-CULTURAL CONSULTANT
ROBERT MAISEL
consequences (both positive and negative) of the decision.

Many would argue that humans, more often than not, tend to make poor
decisions. We would like to believe that we are rational beings, and that +1 917 727 1492
we make decisions logically. Surprisingly however, it appears that the data
derived from extensive research on this topic seems to suggest exactly the
The future of global work has arrived. Technology has advanced immensely • A healthier lifestyle will be easier to attain due to removal of the time, opposite. It therefore seems that most of human decision-making is made robert.w.maisel@gmail.com
and connecting with coworkers all over the globe has never been easier. stress and energy involved in commuting with the emotional side of the brain. So, what does that mean? Are we
Messenger programs/applications and video conferencing software only • The environment will be in better shape because there will be less cars making illogical, emotion-based decisions a lot more frequently than we are
require access to a device and an internet connection. on the road, especially during rush hour, leading to reduced levels of logical, methodical, pensive ones? Yup! www.RobMaisel.com
carbon emissions
The only thing we can be certain about is that the future is uncertain.
There are also some challenges to full-time remote work that must
We have seen a massive rise in remote working and work-from-home be considered:
situations. But is this sustainable, and will it last? Some people believe this is • The possibility of a decline in employee productivity due to the presence
the future and it’s here to stay. Others think that we’ll all be headed back to of more distractions at home than in the office
our offices (for those who work in offices) in due time. It is likely that moving • More, and potentially more severe misunderstandings amongst co-
forward, we will see a hybrid of these two scenarios. workers, due to less face-to-face interactions
• A potential decrease in morale due to less in-person socialization with
It seems inevitable that some jobs will need to continue to be done in person. coworkers
Working at a restaurant for example, is the type of job that at present, simply • More disorganization due to many employees not having a designated
cannot be done remotely. This is because an exchange of goods must take home office space
place, and whether that exchange takes place at the restaurant, a venue, a
customer’s home or elsewhere, that exchange must take place in person. In regard to employers, more trust in their employees will be required. With
However, in the future as machines take on more and more tasks, we may less in-person supervision possible, employees will need to be given the
stop seeing a need for the role of delivery people (i.e. food, packages, etc.). freedom to get their work done when and how they see fit. Tax implications
could get complicated for corporations with more employees potentially
Having seen that less office space, and in some instances, no office space at living and working, at least for part of the year, in locations that they
all is required, it is plausible that some corporations will decide to allow their traditionally hadn’t worked from prior to the pandemic.
employees to work virtually full-time. Permanently. But what will the effect of
doing that be? Well, let’s take a look. For employees, the tax implications of working from multiple locations could
get complicated as well. So, we may see a rise in the need for accountants.
Here are some of the benefits: The addition of these potentially complex cross-border residence scenarios
• companies won’t pay to rent a physical office space, saving them may simply be too much to handle for some accountants, especially during
immense amounts of money their busy season, which could lead them to rely on their network to support
• employees will have a better work-life balance due to having more clients -- either outsourcing or referring out some of their work.
flexibility with their schedules

51. FDI ALLIANCE INTERNATIONAL