Former Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner Erica Groshen on how better data gathering can improve careers and the economy and why it’s important to keep politics out of federal statistical research. Also: skills, worker voice, gig, inequality, the social safety net, and assessing the impact of Covid-19.

Eastern Bank is betting that bigger is better when it comes to serving small businesses and supporting local communities and philanthropic causes. Until recently the oldest and largest mutual bank in the US, Eastern has gone public and is pursuing an aggressive growth strategy. CEO and Chair, Bob Rivers, on maintaining the bank’s commitment to diversity—in business, communities, and internally—and how Covid has reconfigured work and magnified the challenges faced by small and minority-owned businesses.

Translators aren’t headed for obsolescence just yet. Computer-assisted language translation has come a long way, but for many jobs, you’ll still need a human in the loop to avoid inaccuracies, tone-deafness, and cultural insensitivity. Computer scientist Spence Green is president of enterprise language translation company, Lilt. He unpacks state-of-the-art neural network machine translation and explains the critical function of localizing content for international markets.

Managing the Future of Work project co-chair and podcast co-host, Joe Fuller joins Aassia Haq on MBO Partners’ State of Independence. What does the post-Covid workforce look like, and what are the biggest challenges facing CEOs and CHROs as they compete to marshal talent and transform their workforces?  

As the US vies with global AI rivals for technological and strategic advantage, where will it find the human brainpower and skilled labor to compete? Is the government prepared for the challenge? Artificial intelligence is crossing boundaries, transforming markets, and raising ethical concerns. José-Marie Griffiths, member of the National Security Committee on Artificial Intelligence, discusses the commission’s recommendations.

Many architects are looking for work these days but the profession as a whole is influencing the future of work writ large. Architecture is shaped by the tension between the creative process and the more rigid, risk-averse business of building—a business that’s been hit hard by the pandemic. At the same time, architects are playing a key role in redefining work- and living spaces for the new normal. Stefan Behnisch, whose firm Behnisch Architekten designed Harvard’s vast new science and engineering complex, deconstructs the design and construction workforce, the future of the office, and the post-Covid city.

Social Finance has deftly aligned incentives around skills training. By pooling public and private resources and making job placement a shared goal, the nonprofit is providing proof of concept that could scale to address workforce development needs nationwide. Co-founder and CEO Tracy Palandjian explains career impact bonds and social impact bonds.

Going into the pandemic, Spotify was well positioned for the increase in demand for streaming music and podcasts. To accommodate the surge and expand its podcast presence, the 15-year-old Swedish company with offices in more than 70 countries increased its staff by a third in 2020. How do you manage such rapid growth in the midst of a pandemic, and what does the post-Covid workplace look like? What does it mean to be a purpose-driven, diverse, and inclusive firm? CHRO Katarina Berg explains.

As employers and job seekers cope with pandemic-induced disruption and uncertainty, the role of intermediary is more crucial than ever. Job platform CareerBuilder, with its two-sided skills market, looks to smooth the employment process and increase diversity. CEO Irina Novoselsky discusses the shift to skills-based hiring, demographic changes in the workforce, the benefits of well-informed AI, and how Covid and the gig economy are leading employers to make fulltime positions more flexible.

Digital platforms for highly skilled freelancers are set to broker more strategic engagements for businesses needing extra capacity and flexibility. HBS and Managing the Future of Work’s Joe Fuller and Boston Consulting Group’s Allison Bailey, co-authors of the report Building the On-Demand Workforce, join Bill Kerr. How can employers adapt their approach to talent and align management incentives to benefit from this trend? What are the implications for workers and what choices are policymakers weighing?