Preparing For The Future Of Work: Jeanne Hardy of Creative Business On The Top Five Trends To Watch In The Future Of Work

An Interview with Phil La Duke

Redefining what success looks like. So many of today’s work constructs are based on the traditional 9-to-5 workday, but everything has changed. From management styles to the corporate org chart to the very reason we choose to go into the office, everything we understood or accepted as the norm is evolving. At the same time, how we measure success in this entirely transformed environment needs to evolve as well. We need to study things like attrition, performance, professional development and employee well-being over the long-term to understand how to measure success in the future.

There have been major disruptions in recent years that promise to change the very nature of work. From the ongoing shifts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the impacts caused by automation, and other possible disruptions to the status quo, many wonder what the future holds in terms of employment. For example, a report by the McKinsey Global Institute that estimated automation will eliminate 73 million jobs by 2030.

To address this open question, we reached out to successful leaders in business, government, and labor, as well as thought leaders about the future of work to glean their insights and predictions on the future of work and the workplace.

As a part of this interview series called “Preparing For The Future Of Work”, we had the pleasure to interview Jeanne Hardy.

Jeanne Hardy is the president and founder of Creative Business Inc., a business services and financial advisory firm, custom tailored to support the needs of entrepreneurs and business leaders in creative industries. Hardy was recognized as a Gold Stevie Award Winner for 2021’s Most Innovative Women of The Year in Accounting and Finance. A member of the Forbes Business Council and regular contributor to the publication, she has also been profiled in Thrive Global and Medium, and regularly participates in industry events as a guest speaker. An alumna of the Goldman Sachs 10K Small Businesses program, Hardy recently completed a certificate in Strategic Leadership with Stanford GSB Executive Education.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers like to get an idea of who you are and where you came from. Can you tell us a bit about your background? Where do you come from? What are the life experiences that most shaped your current self?

I started my career in the arts as a trained fine artist. I attended The Art Institute of Chicago and the School of Visual Arts in New York City and always thought I’d spend my whole life as an artist. But as I navigated the art world and spent time working with galleries and fellow artists, I noticed a surprising dearth of financial literacy. So many of the creative entrepreneurs I encountered were being held back by their inexperience with financial and business administration, and I wanted to help.

I began by providing basic services like bookkeeping and quickly realized how big an impact I could make by simply providing a solid business foundation upon which artists and creative entrepreneurs could grow. I was so energized and inspired by the experience and success of my clients that I decided to formally launch Creative Business Inc.

In 15+ years, we’ve expanded our focus and grown the business, helping countless organizations successfully grow and achieve long-term financial sustainability.

What do you expect to be the major disruptions for employers in the next 10–15 years? How should employers pivot to adapt to these disruptions?

The biggest disruption on the horizon is the future of hybrid work. It’s going to change everything — how many managers an organization needs; how businesses evaluate talent; how we train talent. It’s like going back to business management 101.

We need to collectively learn how to effectively manage remote and integrated teams in ways that make employees feel connected and motivated.

We’re embarking on a massive transition — one I expect to last for years if not decades.

The choice as to whether or not a young person should pursue a college degree was once a “no-brainer”. But with the existence of many high profile millionaires (and billionaires) who did not earn degrees, as well as the fact that many graduates are saddled with crushing student loan debt and unable to find jobs it has become a much more complex question. What advice would you give to young adults considering whether or not to go to college?

I still believe there is a ton of value in getting a college degree. A college environment is so different from a real world work environment and most of us need that interim stage.

The last two years of college in particular are when you really start making decisions for yourself and lay the foundation for your professional career. You also have a unique opportunity to benefit from authentic mentorship and build a network of peers that you can draw on for years to come.

Despite the doom and gloom predictions, there are, and likely still will be, jobs available. How do you see job seekers having to change their approaches to finding not only employment, but employment that fits their talents and interests?

My advice to job seekers is to stick with a role for at least a year. Employers want to see that you’ve had enough time to overcome the inevitable learning curve associated with every new role and new organization; it shows that you’re gaining true job experience rather than simply adding another title to your resume.

The statistics of artificial intelligence and automation eliminating millions of jobs, appears frightening to some. For example, Walmart aims to eliminate cashiers altogether and Dominos is instituting pizza delivery via driverless vehicles. How should people plan their careers such that they can hedge their bets against being replaced by automation or robots?

Automation is there to enhance (not replace) human performance and decision making. Leveraging and thriving in a work environment with widespread automation requires workers to strengthen their ability to evaluate data, contextualize information and think strategically.

I would encourage all professionals to be more curious and ask more questions about the work you’re doing. The more you can draw connections, the more you’ll build a strategic advantage.

Technological advances and pandemic restrictions hastened the move to working from home. Do you see this trend continuing? Why or why not?

Absolutely! It’s fantastic to see everyone gain some flexibility and autonomy over their lives — whether it’s less commuting time, more family time or longer windows of focus.

While the events of 2020 and 2021 didn’t necessarily allow people to settle into a regular work from home rhythm, I think we’re going to see that change in 2022 with people adapting to and excelling in a remote environment.

What societal changes do you foresee as necessary to support the fundamental changes to work?

I think from a professional standpoint we’re going to need to collectively strengthen our skill sets. Meaningful communication, particularly how you write and organize your thoughts, will play a big role in the future of work.

The days of quick one-word answers are gone as we find ourselves dispersed across the country and around the world. We really need to level up how we’re communicating with one another.

What changes do you think will be the most difficult for employers to accept? What changes do you think will be the most difficult for employees to accept?

One of the biggest challenges for both employers and employees is accepting that this transition we’re in is an iterative and unresolved process. We’ve really only just begun to figure out what working from home and hybrid work looks like at this kind of scale.

Both sides need to work together, consult one another, communicate and update our approach until we get to something that makes sense for everyone.

The COVID-19 pandemic helped highlight the inadequate social safety net that many workers at all pay levels have. Is this something that you think should be addressed? In your opinion how should this be addressed?

The business community needs to play a leading role in addressing the challenges people face, particularly as they relate to supportive services. I think, collectively, we need to rethink how we design our businesses and incorporate things like flexible work options, healthcare and childcare into how we compensate employees.

We also need to stop operating in a vacuum. I encourage every business leader to get out and be involved in their community; it’s the only way to truly understand the values as well as the struggles that their employees are facing.

Despite all that we have said earlier, what is your greatest source of optimism about the future of work?

The ability for more people to work remotely makes me feel very optimistic.

The more we can plug in digitally and incorporate technology into our everyday work and life, the more we can accelerate solutions to some of our biggest challenges.

During the pandemic, we saw that every generation had to turn to technology to sustain themselves — children joined classes via Zoom, adults brought the office home and seniors relied on apps and video conferencing for everything from grocery shopping to doctor visits.

I think when more people touch technology, we advance towards an equitable society where everyone has equal access to resources, services, education and power over their own lives.

Historically, major disruptions to the status quo in employment, particularly disruptions that result in fewer jobs, are temporary with new jobs replacing the jobs lost. Unfortunately, there has often been a gap between the job losses and the growth of new jobs. What do you think we can do to reduce the length of this gap?

Having spent my entire career working with creative industries and learning firsthand that you can build a job and even an entire company around an unmet need, I think the best thing entrepreneurs and companies can do to support job creation is to keep their eyes and minds open to new opportunities created by change.

Okay, wonderful. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “Top 5 Trends To Watch In the Future of Work?” (Please share a story or example for each.)

1. Redefining what success looks like. So many of today’s work constructs are based on the traditional 9-to-5 workday, but everything has changed. From management styles to the corporate org chart to the very reason we choose to go into the office, everything we understood or accepted as the norm is evolving. At the same time, how we measure success in this entirely transformed environment needs to evolve as well. We need to study things like attrition, performance, professional development and employee well-being over the long-term to understand how to measure success in the future.
2. The further integration of technology. Technology’s role in our lives and in our work is only going to increase with areas like automation, machine learning, artificial intelligence and even quantum computing poised for enormous growth. Businesses that embrace technology and forecast how it will affect their clients and market will be better equipped to identify new areas of opportunity and better poised to thrive. As I looked ahead to the future for financial service providers, I saw some of the pain points that small firms experience in investing in, operationalizing and leveraging technology. This inspired me to create an entirely new business, Levvy, designed around the needs of the future firm.
3. A bigger emphasis on human intelligence. We’re evolving past the “hunter / gatherer” approach to data and technology as automation continues to streamline many of the more mundane aspects of our jobs. This changes business’ and professionals’ value proposition though, shifting the emphasis to human intelligence and analysis. As this transition occurs, we need to invest in learning new skills and thinking more critically about everything around us. At Creative Business, we encourage everyone on our team to think not like an entry-level or mid-level finance professional, but instead like a CFO — shifting from a transactional mindset to one that’s focused on providing the kind of insight that builds long-term relationships and value.
4. More strategic communications. In a work environment where people are distributed across different offices, home environments and co-working spaces, communication has to change. The old “I’ll swing by your office to discuss later” approach no longer applies and one-word emails (“yes,” “no,” “idk”) with no grammar or punctuation will appear tone deaf in an environment where we all have to work a little harder to maintain clear and effective communication. I see written communication as an incredible opportunity to improve how we stand out, educate our peers and create buy-in. We need to re-learn how to build an email or memo, specifically how to convey all of the relevant information without wasting someone’s time with superfluous language.
5. Stronger leadership. I’m not sure if this is a trend or more of a natural side effect of the challenging and rapidly changing landscape we’re in today. Either way, I think we’re going to see — by necessity and “survival of the fittest” — that leaders across industries are going to have to level up. The future of work demands much more from business leaders. The old template for the “way things have always been done” suddenly feels irrelevant. You can already see the pushback at organizations with CEOs that mandate everyone come back to the office “because I said so.” We need leadership that is empathic, creative and willing to rethink everything…I can’t wait!

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how this quote has shaped your perspective?

I recently came across this quote from New York Times bestselling author, financial editor and journalist Jean Chatzky: “Resilience isn’t a single skill. It’s a variety of skills and coping mechanisms. To bounce back from bumps in the road as well as failures, you should focus on emphasizing the positive.”

If ever there was ever a time to celebrate resilience and channel lessons learned into forward momentum, that time is now.

Every person, every business has collectively endured a period of unimaginable challenges and I think — as with any challenge — its real value lies in how we respond and what we do with what we’ve learned. I’m excited to see all the inspiring ideas, businesses and personal triumphs that are born out of this period of challenge.

We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.

Hands down, Sallie Krawcheck. She was the CEO of Smith Barney, Citi Wealth Management and Merrill Lynch Wealth Management before founding her own company, Ellevest. She used her incredible platform to create a financial company, built by women for women, with the goal of closing the gender money gap.

Our readers often like to follow our interview subjects’ careers. How can they further follow your work online?

I’m always trying to weigh in on some of the new and most pressing issues small businesses are facing. I’m a frequent contributor to Accounting Today and a member of the Forbes Business Council where I often publish articles.

I also offer a completely free monthly newsletter. Anyone can sign up on Creative Business’s website at https://www.creativebusinessinc.com/newsletter. It’s a short but sweet compilation of helpful business resources, thought-provoking ideas, can’t-miss events, and other fun tidbits tailored to entrepreneurs and business owners.

You can also follow me on Twitter (@creativebizinc) or Creative Business Inc.’s LinkedIn for weekly insights.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this. We wish you continued success and good health.