Technology
Technology and humanity at the center of companies of the future
How to balance technological advancement with the centrality of people in the corporate environment? It was with this reflection that the panel “The impact on companies and technological transformation” began, part of the Imersão Indústria program, an event held by FIEMG, this Tuesday, October 1st, at Minascentro, in Belo Horizonte.
On stage, Sofia Trombetta, director of People at ArcelorMittal LATAM and Mining, and Doctor Gustavo Donato, associate professor at Fundação Dom Cabral (FDC) and former dean of Centro Universitário FEI, shared their views on how technology and people should go together to shape the future of organizations.
Donato opened the debate by emphasizing that the evolution of society and professionals is linked to the capacity for constant relearning. According to him, in the coming decades of 2030 and 2040, around 80% of professionals will need to be “lifelong learners“, that is, learning throughout their entire lives, unlearning and relearning as new paradigms present themselves. In this scenario, technology is a fundamental presence. He recommended reading the Future Today Institutes “Tech Trends Report”, released annually at the SXSW festival in the United States, as a tool to understand the main axes of technological transformation, with emphasis on the role of artificial intelligence (AI).
Regarding AI, the professor-doctor is already redesigning areas such as personalized health, climate and energy, mobility, robotics and logistics. However, he warned about the decreasing use of people's “natural intelligence”. “My big fear is that we are using natural intelligence less,” he said, highlighting that excessive technological stimuli has led to a loss of focus, increased anxiety and a “knowledge collapse” phenomenon. He also brought up the concept of the “nexialist” — a professional of the future who creates connections between non-obvious areas of knowledge, being an agent of innovation in complex and interdisciplinary environments.
Sofia Trombetta, in turn, addressed the importance of putting people at the center of this technological transformation process. “Talking about science and technology without talking about people is not possible,” he declared. She highlighted the challenge that organizations face in a context in which four generations are living in the same work environment, which creates “generational chaos”. For Sofia, the role of people management areas is fundamental to ensure that employees can face technological transformation organically and without fear.
The panel at Imersão Indústria highlighted that the future of companies inevitably involves the integration between people and technology. Innovation, according to the speakers, will only be successful if organizations know how to balance the transformative power of artificial intelligence with care for human beings. The challenge is to navigate technological transformation, keeping people at the center, as protagonists of the changes that will shape the organizations of the future.
Imersão Indústria is carried out by FIEMG, SESI and SENAI, with master sponsorship from ArcelorMittal, Codemge, CNI and Vale; master support from SEBRAE; gold sponsorship of Herculano Mineração, Gerdau, Eletrobras, Schneider Eletric; silver sponsorship from Sicoob Credfiemg, Copasa, CBMM, Souza Cruz/BAT Brasil, USIMINAS and Nanum Nanotecnologia; and support from BDMG, Localiza, Bemisa, Sambatec, FAEMG and Fecomércio.