Ep31 Cuts, Skills & Growth: Goldman Sachs, Klarna, Microsoft, IBM & WEF/Forbes Jobs Impact Reports

Will AI take your job—or just the worst parts of it? In this episode, Ben is joined by Alan Back (30 years in sales leadership across public sector, cloud and PE-backed businesses) to unpack what AI really means for jobs, skills, and the future of work. We cut through the doom to look at where automation actually lands, where augmentation is winning, and how to stay on the right side of the change.What we cover:• World Economic Forum jobs outlook: displacement vs creation• Goldman Sachs’ productivity thesis—what “affected” jobs really means• Forbes on retraining reality (early careers vs 30-year veterans)• Klarna’s customer service experiment—when humans come back into the loop• Big Tech signals: job cuts vs massive AI investment & reskilling• Stanford’s “green-light” tasks: where workers want AI agents• Practical playbook: reposition, reskill, and focus on high-value workChapters:00:00 Introduction and Setting the Scene00:35 Guest Introduction: Alan’s Background01:28 Agenda Overview: AI and Job Market02:39 World Economic Forum Jobs Report07:39 Goldman Sachs on AI’s Impact11:54 Forbes Insights on Job Displacement18:29 Klarna’s AI and Customer Service Experiment20:53 AI’s Impact on Customer Service21:35 Job Cuts and AI Investments22:15 Big Tech’s AI Commitments23:26 The Growing Demand for AI Skills24:40 The Future of Work with AI31:45 Trust and Resistance to AI35:12 Embracing AI for High-Value Work41:09 Adapting to the New World of Work#AIJobs #FutureOfWork #ArtificialIntelligence #Automation #Augmentation #AICareers #Reskilling #Upskilling #CustomerService #AIAgents #Productivity #Workforce #TechTrends #AIEconomy #AIOutcomesPodcast