As artificial intelligence and emerging technologies shape the nature of work, industry leaders are urging organisations to rethink how they deploy technology, such that it also empowers people.
“A forward-looking organisation looks at AI and technology more as a collaborator than a threat,” said Surya Prakash Mohapatra, global competency head for industry cloud and digital business at Wipro, at the Bengaluru Skill Summit 2025 held from November 4-6.
This mindset shift is essential as companies navigate roles that are rapidly evolving due to technological intervention.
Mohapatra emphasised that AI’s power lies in its accessibility. In the modern enterprise, AI should not be reserved for specialists, it must be democratised. “There is absolute democratisation of data and AI… everybody has access to AI tools and platforms.” This democratisation pushes organisations to redesign their processes so employees at every level can participate in the value creation AI enables.
But, as AI becomes infused into workflows, the human element becomes even more essential. Mohapatra stressed the importance of “contextualising the human element” because human beings “understand the context… they have empathy… they understand the customers, they understand the stakeholders.”
The Human Intelligence AI Can’t Replace
Shyamala Jhaveri, VP of HR operations and global shared services deployment program lead at Alstom, extended the idea by touching upon the emotional and ethical gaps that algorithms cannot fill. “We are in a world where algorithms drive decisions, strategy is driven by data, and human attention is fragmented,” she observed.
She referenced a popular idea attributed to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella: “In the future, the most scarce commodity would be human attention”. In a hyper-automated world, attention becomes a differentiator, not a given.
Jhaveri also recounted a case where a logistics company introduced an AI scheduling algorithm that improved delivery metrics but unintentionally harmed trust. The drivers felt they were “working for an algorithm versus with an algorithm” until a leader accompanied them and discovered that the system didn’t factor in “the human chaos, a sick child at home, flood, road blocks, traffic”. Only after incorporating these realities did trust and morale improve.
Lessons from Robotics and Daily Life
While Mohapatra and Jhaveri focused on organisational AI, Dr Basaralu Sudharshan, skilling and education executive advisor for World Alliance for Microcredentials, grounded the conversation in concrete examples of automation.
He described how Finnish vocational institutes use a fully automated robotic milking system managed by a single person, with behavioural intelligence built into its design. Robots even deliver goods autonomously in rural towns, adapting to environmental challenges and interacting with children who get in their way.
These stories highlight how deeply technology has penetrated everyday operations, far beyond corporate boardrooms. But Sudharshan emphasised that the design of such systems must consider human behaviour, especially as automation scales. This requires strong vocational training, micro-credentialing, and skilling systems that respond to the needs of a technology-driven economy.
He also warned that technology alone cannot compensate for missing soft skills. Young professionals, he noted, often lack people skills because of “the technology advancement…the way we have moulded them” has reduced real human interaction. In an AI-enabled world, this becomes a real disadvantage.
AI-Infused Learning Ecosystems
Regional HR director for Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa regions at Kyndryl, Dr Augustus G S Azariah, brought a complementary perspective focused on how organisations can leverage AI to build continuous learning cultures. He emphasised that companies can integrate AI into their HR and learning systems to make employee skills more visible and actionable. “One of the ways of doing [this] is by using technology, by using AI… and merging it with your pipeline of future skills and work.”
This fosters transparency, eliminating the outdated notion that employee profiles should be confidential and facilitating improved internal mobility. When employees acquire “hot skills,” Azariah recommended rewarding them more to reinforce a performance culture aligned with future business needs.
His message underscored that AI is not only a tool for automation, it is a foundation for talent transformation. The organisations that thrive will be those that use technology to unlock human potential rather than constrain it.
A clear narrative emerged at the summit: the future of work relies on balancing AI’s computational power with human emotional and ethical strengths. This consensus believes that technology enhances human value when organisations intentionally integrate empathy, context, and continuous learning into their systems.
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