Cambridge Business Association
Humans at Work
Book

Humans at Work

The Art and Practice of Creating the Hybrid Workplace

Anna Tavis and Stela Lupushor
Kogan Page, 2022
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative
  • Eye Opening
  • Concrete Examples

Recommendation

A technological revolution precipitated radical change in how people work, and the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated it. The very concept of work has changed significantly, and companies must adapt if they hope to compete and succeed. Assumptions about and approaches to work that began in the 19th century and carried through the 20th are no longer tenable. Professor Anna Tavis and business founder Stela Lupushor explain how to redesign work and the workplace to meet contemporary demands. Everyone in the workplace, especially corporate leaders and human resource officials, will find their research, insights and proposals illuminating.

Summary

The model of work has evolved and changed.

“Work” used to be the same as “jobs,” but this is no longer true. Work related standards must change regarding how and what companies measure. The workforce and workplace must become more human centered. Increasingly, achieving worker satisfaction requires something beyond financial remuneration. Companies must acknowledge their employees’ worth through personalized benefits and opportunities.

The “4+3 W’s Framework” emphasizes historical context, present needs and future options related to four concepts: “Work,” the “Workforce,” the “Workplace” and “Worth” – all modern extensions of considerations that first began to matter in ancient times.

The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle taught that leisure is “intrinsically good,” but that work is only “extrinsically good.” But for work to be good, leisure is indispensable. Pandemic lockdowns destroyed the separation of leisure and work and, for people who work long hours, destroyed leisure altogether. This absence of any demarcation between work and leisure left people overwhelmed.

As management put a ...

About the Authors

Anna Tavis is a clinical professor and academic director of the Human Capital Management department at the NYU School of Professional Studies. Stela Lupushor founded Reframe.Work Inc. She and Solange Charas  cowrote Humanizing Human Capital: Invest in Your People for Optimal Business Returns.

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