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It's the start of the first full work week of 2025. While some are keen to hit the ground running with their goals and targets for the next 12 months, others may be dreading the work year ahead.
The workplace has seen some major shifts in recent years, from burnout and stress hitting record highs across various professions to "quiet quitting" and more people seeking a better work-life balance and flexible working options.
So, what changes could we see in the workplace in 2025 and could artificial intelligence (AI) be the key to your well-being at work? Newsweek has spoken to various experts on the future of work.
Could a Drastically Reduced Work Week Be Feasible?
Advancements around AI in the growing age of remote working have sparked fears it could replace the human workforce.
But what if AI can enhance well-being in the workspace, allowing people to work fewer days in a week?
Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan, previously floated the idea of a 3.5-day work week in an interview with Bloomberg TV back in 2023.
"People have to take a deep breath," Dimon said at the time. "Technology has always replaced jobs. Your children are going to live to 100 and not have cancer because of technology, and literally they'll probably be working three and a half days a week."
As radical as Dimon's predictions might seem, the CEO may be onto something, as research has shown the benefits of a shorter work week.
A study published by Social Science and Medicine in November 2019, before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which ushered in a new era of remote work, found that "there is scope for the working week to be radically reduced."
A study among workers in Iceland, published by Autonomy in June 2021, which trialed a reduced work week of 35 to 36 hours with no reduction in pay, found that "productivity and service provision remained the same or improved across the majority of trial workplaces." The study also found that "worker well-being dramatically increased across a range of indicators, from perceived stress and burnout, to health and work-life balance."
Deborah Perry Piscione, co-author of Employment Is Dead: How Disruptive Technologies Are Revolutionizing the Way We Work, argues that technology and shifting cultural attitudes will drive us toward either a three-day work week or significantly shortened workdays within a five-day structure. Perry Piscione told Newsweek: "This isn't just speculation—it's a natural progression as we move from measuring time to measuring output."
She advocates for "life-stage flexibility," enabling employees to adapt work schedules to personal circumstances, with compensation tied to output rather than hours worked.
Organizational psychologist Edel Holliday-Quinn, founder of the Centre for Leadership Psychology, challenges traditional work structures. "The 9-to-5, five-day work week was built for a world of factories and fixed outputs," she told Newsweek.
"In today's world, where technology shapes everything we do, we're still clinging to outdated ways of measuring effort by hours instead of outcomes. Isn't it time we asked whether that old model still serves us?"
Professor Naeem Zafar from the University of California Berkeley, who teaches various courses in entrepreneurship and innovation, told Newsweek that "a shorter work week is very much a reality that is about to arrive."
According to Zafar, this trend already took root during the COVID-19 pandemic era, with many "working fewer than 40 hours a week while remaining productive and earning the same income."
He predicts that "we will likely see the work week reduced to four days for most professions within five years, and probably to 3.5 days within 10 years," with several mundane tasks being automated using AI and robots.
Edward Tian, the CEO of GPTZero, an AI detector, remains skeptical. "When things are made easier, expectations tend to shift," Tian told Newsweek. He notes that while AI increases efficiency, it often results in workers taking on new tasks rather than fewer hours.
"There is widespread assumption that technology will make work easier for employees and potentially decrease the amount of work they have to do. What actually happens is that employees simply end up having to take on other responsibilities so that they are doing the same amount of work or more," Tian explained.
Will AI Take Over Jobs and Make All Work Remote?
AI's impact on employment and remote work varies across industries.
Kathy Diaz, the chief people officer at global IT services company Cognizant, told Newsweek that while remote work has grown, it is not universally feasible across all industries, such as healthcare, manufacturing and retail.
Several major companies, such as Google, Apple, Amazon and Disney, have issued different return-to-office (RTO) policies, requiring employees to work at the office for at least some of the work week.
Unsurprisingly, the RTO mandates have been met by backlash from workers, with some even quitting their jobs as a result. In an August 2023 survey conducted by FlexJobs, over half (56 percent) of those surveyed said they know someone who has quit or plans to quit their jobs due to RTO mandates.
"As transformative as AI can be, it can't completely take over all elements of work as many roles require human creativity, emotional intelligence, and complex decision-making," Diaz says. "The importance of softer skills will continue to increase as generative AI and automation optimize routine tasks. Today, it's not just about solving problems, it's about finding them in the first place."
AI's ability to streamline tasks poses both challenges and opportunities across professions. Zafar says: "Predictions suggest that by 2040, there will be over a billion humanoid robots working in fields such as construction, agriculture, warehousing, policing, and even the military."
HP Newquist, the executive director of The Relayer Group, told Newsweek that repetitive tasks in law, accounting, and advertising are already being handled by AI, adding that manual trades remain less affected.
Newquist said "Ultimately, any job that is not 'hands on'—skills such as woodworking, electrical wiring and routing, plumbing—will have an AI component. This is completely at odds with the conventional wisdom of just 20 years ago—that intelligent robots would take over all the manual jobs. The exact opposite is happening, and now it is the executive and creative classes that need to be watching out for their jobs."
Stefan Weitz, the co-founder and CEO of HumanX, a gathering for AI professionals, sees AI both displacing and creating jobs. He told Newsweek that "the enterprise technology, technical infrastructure, cybersecurity and media sectors will be the most impacted, with AI playing a big role in their long-term strategies."
According to a recent HumanX survey of over 1,000 U.S. business leaders across diverse sectors, "over 75 percent of enterprise tech leaders report that AI is already crucial to daily operations."
Weitz says the retail, cybersecurity, and entertainment sectors face the most concerns over job displacement "as AI becomes more integrated into workflows." However, he believes enterprise functions, such as HR, operations, marketing, and sales, will gain more roles than they lose.
Harnessing the Power of AI
AI promises significant productivity gains and Diaz emphasized the importance of upskilling. A study released in January 2024 by Cognizant and Oxford Economics predicts that generative AI could contribute $1 trillion to the U.S. economy over the next decade or so, with 90 percent of jobs impacted in some way by AI.
"Generative AI makes human skillsets more valuable, and talent should use this moment as a springboard to expand their capabilities, try new roles and become more versatile," Diaz explained.
AI is expected to enhance job quality by shifting people's focus away from routine tasks, enabling them to focus on the higher-value aspects of their work. For example, teachers can have more time to engage students more innovatively, lawyers can focus on advising clients rather than paperwork, and business leaders can prioritize nuanced decision-making, Diaz said.
According to the aforementioned HumanX survey, business leaders are optimistic about AI's role in enhancing productivity and job growth.
More than half (62 percent) believe AI will "significantly improve" their ability to perform their roles and two-thirds expect earnings to increase due to AI-driven efficiencies. At least 70 percent of people across all industries believe AI will have a positive effect on the quality of their work, the survey found.
The Future of Work—What's Holding Us Back
With the benefits of AI acknowledged across various industries, what stops us from fully embracing AI in the workspace?
Holliday-Quinn says it's not just the logistics or even the lack of technology that's getting in the way, but rather the mindset. "Many of today's senior leaders grew up in a world that equates long hours with commitment and results with time spent," she says.
The psychologist believes the next generation of leaders is different, as "they've grown up with technology, flexibility, and a deeper understanding that well-being isn't a luxury—it's critical to performance."
She believes the next wave of leaders is more likely to see ideas like a 3.5-day work week as opportunities for improved productivity, engagement and sustainability, and not as "radical experiments."
Attitudes toward work are evolving, with increasing demand for balance and purpose. A shorter work week could be a powerful way to reduce burnout, support mental health, and "level the playing field for caregivers and others balancing competing priorities," Holliday-Quinn says.
According to the psychologist, "whether it's moving toward a 3.5-day work week or rethinking flexibility altogether, we need leaders who are bold enough to challenge outdated norms. It's not just about working less—it's about designing work that fits into life, not the other way around."
Perry Piscione believes this transformation—a fundamental shift recognizing that productivity isn't tied to time spent at a desk—can happen now with AI integration. and will have a cascade of benefits for society.
"With workers on staggered schedules, we'll see dramatic reductions in rush-hour traffic in metropolitan areas, leading to environmental benefits and improved quality of life," Perry Piscione says.
While challenges remain, Holliday-Quinn envisions numerous rewards, such as a happier, healthier workforce, greater productivity, and a sustainable approach to business. "The question isn't whether change is coming but how boldly we're willing to embrace it," she says.
