This Working Life

The narrative around AI at work is moving away from “job apocalypse” towards jobs transforming. 

So how do you redesign roles to improve productivity and take care of the psychosocial safety and wellbeing of workers?

Guests:

John Curtin Distinguished Professor Sharon Parker, Director of  Centre for Transformative Work Design, Curtin University 

If you’d like to try the S.M.A.R.T. job design assessment, the link is here.  

Have you struggled to make lasting behaviour change at work, and wondered why you can’t get to the next level?  

The author of bestsellers Hooked and Indistractable, spoke with readers who loved his books but couldn’t nail the change part. He spent the next five years researching what was missing, Beyond Belief is the result.  

Nir Eyal, behavioural design expert, author, Beyond Belief: The Science-Backed Way to Stop Limiting Yourself and Achieve Extraordinary results

Working for longer can help you financially, as well as giving you purpose, a social life and a healthier brain. 

We speak with three Australians working past retirement age, and an expert coach who helps individuals and organisations achieve longevity goals.

Guests:

Ronni Kahn AO, social entrepreneur, Founder and Visionary in Residence, OzHarvest  

Brian James, co-founder, The Copper Doctors 

Alison Hernandez, co-founder, Re-create 100 

Scientia Professor Henry Brodaty, co-director of Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing, UNSW, 2026 Senior Australian of the Year

You can find Professor Henry’s Brodaty’s healthy brain ageing tips at the end of this episode.

Circadian rhythms dictate our peak times or chronotypes and they vary across the workforce, so why does everything start so early? 

Learn how these biological rhythms interact with cognitive and emotional performance and how practicing circadian-influenced leadership can help get the best out of your team. 

Guest:

Stefan Volk, Professor of Management at the University of Sydney Business School 

Jackie O’s lawyers claim ARN breached workplace health and safety obligations by failing to protect her psychosocial health while she was working with co-host Kyle Sandilands.  

As the case heads to court this week, find out how leaders should manage psychological safety at work, and learn the potential consequences if they fail to do so. 

Guests:

Martyn Campbell, former Chief Executive of SafeWork SA and Secretary-General of the International Association of Labour inspection. 

Fay Calderone, employment lawyer and partner, Hall and Willcox and author, Broken to Safe: tackling toxic workplace cultures and burnout

Marcus Buckingham’s latest research shows that love is a driver of super productive human behaviour. He argues the case for "designing love in" to experiences at work.

Learn how to create experiences that inspire your colleagues and staff to say, "I love that!"

Guest:

Marcus Buckingham, global researcher focused on unlocking strengths, increasing performance and pioneering the future of work. Author, Design Love In

Worrying about your young person’s future? The impact of AI is already changing the job market in some industries.

So what’s the best approach for guiding them into a career during this time of uncertainty? 

Guests:

Alana Kilmartin, speaker and author, Unserious Careers: a fun guide to the first five years of your career

David Carney, Executive Director, Career Industry Council of Australia 

When your boss sends a text complimenting your work, it feels amazing! But if they point out a mistake in front of your peers, you may feel shattered. 

What does it take to be an inspiring leader, and how can you avoid being an infuriating one? 

Guest:

Adam Galinsky, Paul Calello Professor of Leadership and Ethics at the Columbia Business School 

This interview was recorded at the Power, Status and Influence Research Conference, for the Melbourne Business School.

You may soon have a digital clone of your work-self that can take care of many of your tasks, make decisions on your behalf, and even give presentations as you.  

As the emergence of “identic AI” generates more potential for digital human twins in organisations, we discuss the ethics of using them. 

Guests:

Don Tapscott, co-author, You to the Power of Two, Redefining Human Potential in the Age of Identic AI 

With burnout and overwork a problem for staff and employers alike, a proposal to add an extra week to annual leave balances for Australian workers is on the table.  

We speak with a business that already offers five weeks of annual leave per year, and hear from management and labour law experts on whether this add on is the answer, or if there's a better solution.

Guests:

Shae McCrystal, Professor of Labour Law, The University of Sydney Law School 

Carol Kulik, Bradley Distinguished Professor, Centre for Workplace Excellence, Adelaide University 

Greg Day, Co-worker Experience Manager, IKEA