Working in the digital and AI age
ADAPT’s analysis aims to make sense of a complex and ever-evolving topic
Working in the age of digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence, and post-pandemic, with tools that are significantly different from those of the past and are constantly changing, requires a different technological background and a renewal of the culture of work and production. It takes a lot of reflection to understand how much the world of work and production is changing. With this in mind, it may be helpful to read ‘I nuovi paradigmi del lavoro tra digitalizzazione, intelligenza artificiale e metaverso. Riflessioni di sistema’ (The new paradigms of work from digitalisation, artificial intelligence to the metaverse. System reflections), a piece of research by Roberta Caragnano which has recently been published in the ADAPT Labour Studies e-book series.
Caragnano explains that, ‘in recent years and particularly due to the acceleration imposed by the pandemic, the world of work has undergone radical transformation. This is due to (1) pressure from unprecedented technological innovations such as the spread of big data and the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) and (2) the Internet of Things (IoT). These innovations allow business processes to be automated, stimulating product and process innovations (3). They also generate changes in work models that impact the way work is performed.’ All of this has led to widespread and generalised change that continues to evolve. The research therefore starts with an introductory focus on the hybridisation of organisational models and seeks to investigate the elements and variables that influence the ‘extension’ and flexibility of organisations and the organisation of work. It also seeks to investigate the challenges affecting the rules of work itself, which are now totally immersed in ‘hybrid, automated and dematerialised’ scenarios.
Roberta Caragnano’s study begins with an in-depth analysis of organisational models and moves on to examine hybrid working and the emergence of AI and the metaverse. Ultimately, it concludes with the necessity of a ‘change in the rules’ and a new code of ethics in industrial relations.
This significant analytical effort constitutes a valuable foundation for a better understanding of the context in which the production system is evolving.
Roberta Caragnano
ADAPT Labour studies e-Book series n. 108, 2025
ADAPT’s analysis aims to make sense of a complex and ever-evolving topic
Working in the age of digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence, and post-pandemic, with tools that are significantly different from those of the past and are constantly changing, requires a different technological background and a renewal of the culture of work and production. It takes a lot of reflection to understand how much the world of work and production is changing. With this in mind, it may be helpful to read ‘I nuovi paradigmi del lavoro tra digitalizzazione, intelligenza artificiale e metaverso. Riflessioni di sistema’ (The new paradigms of work from digitalisation, artificial intelligence to the metaverse. System reflections), a piece of research by Roberta Caragnano which has recently been published in the ADAPT Labour Studies e-book series.
Caragnano explains that, ‘in recent years and particularly due to the acceleration imposed by the pandemic, the world of work has undergone radical transformation. This is due to (1) pressure from unprecedented technological innovations such as the spread of big data and the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) and (2) the Internet of Things (IoT). These innovations allow business processes to be automated, stimulating product and process innovations (3). They also generate changes in work models that impact the way work is performed.’ All of this has led to widespread and generalised change that continues to evolve. The research therefore starts with an introductory focus on the hybridisation of organisational models and seeks to investigate the elements and variables that influence the ‘extension’ and flexibility of organisations and the organisation of work. It also seeks to investigate the challenges affecting the rules of work itself, which are now totally immersed in ‘hybrid, automated and dematerialised’ scenarios.
Roberta Caragnano’s study begins with an in-depth analysis of organisational models and moves on to examine hybrid working and the emergence of AI and the metaverse. Ultimately, it concludes with the necessity of a ‘change in the rules’ and a new code of ethics in industrial relations.
This significant analytical effort constitutes a valuable foundation for a better understanding of the context in which the production system is evolving.
Roberta Caragnano
ADAPT Labour studies e-Book series n. 108, 2025