As organisations grapple with shifting employee expectations and the rise of AI, Mercer’s Kate Bravery says it’s time to rewrite the rules of work. In the ‘people age’, loyalty looks different – and so must the way HR designs, rewards and sustains work.
For HR leaders, the future of work has rarely felt more complex – or more promising.
As Mercer’s global advisory leader Kate Bravery outlined in the latest episode of AHRI’s podcast Let’s Take This Offline, organisations are at a crossroads: they can cling to the industrial-era rules that no longer serve them, or embrace a new contract of work that puts people, not processes, at the centre of performance.
Bravery argues that the “rules of work” need to be rewritten. Beneath the surface, she says, discontent is rising, with 40 per cent of employees believing the world of work is broken, and one in two younger workers not wanting the jobs that exist today.
Many employees are staying put out of fear or fatigue, rather than fulfillment – a concept known as “job hugging”, where people hold on to jobs that no longer serve them while their motivation slowly erodes – which is impacting organisational performance.
In short, the old loyalty contract has dissolved, says Bravery.
“People can say ‘I’m highly engaged in my work’, but in [their] spare time, [they’re] looking for a new job,” she says. “What people want is a lifestyle contract. They want to work for a company that is helping them thrive in their health, wealth, career today and setting them up for success tomorrow.”
For HR, that shift demands a fundamental redesign of how work is structured and rewarded. Bravery’s research shows that employees want to work with organisations, not for them. They expect transparency about pay, purpose and progression; flexibility that genuinely supports wellbeing; and learning that fits into life, not around it.
Hear from Bravery about how organisations can meet these new and emerging expectations in this episode of Let’s Take This Offline.
Redesigning work for AI
Artificial intelligence, Bravery notes, can accelerate job redesign – if used wisely. AI is already enabling organisations to personalise employee value propositions, tailoring benefits and communication to different workforce segments. It can also help ensure fairness in pay, promotion and opportunity decisions, reducing bias and improving transparency.
Yet Bravery cautions that the productivity gains promised by AI must be reinvested in people, not simply funnelled to the bottom line.
“This AI era is offering a productivity dividend that all stakeholders should be sharing, not just shareholders,” she says.
Progressive employers are already using AI-enabled work design to give employees back time for learning, lateral moves or wellbeing – a practical step toward the “people age”, she says.
HR now has the evidence, the technology and the moral authority to redesign work for sustainability, fairness and growth, she adds.
“We have the chance to rewrite the rules of work,” she says. “If we don’t take this opportunity to build jobs that get people excited and inspired, then I think we’ve failed.”
Listen to the full episode for more useful insights from Kate Bravery, and make sure you subscribe so you never miss a future episode.