Module 04 · 12 minutes
Agency and Workload
Manage workload, surveillance, inclusion, team agreements, and role transitions as AI changes work.
Written and edited by Cahyanto Arie Wibowo. Last reviewed · version 1.2.
What does “Agency and Workload” mean in practice?
A small Future of Work case shows where Agency and Workload is useful and where a simpler approach may be better. Test Agency and Workload on one small case first. Record the expected result, the failure signal, and the point where the decision needs another review. You will make one small decision with Agency and Workload, including a boundary and a signal that triggers another check.
After this lesson
- A small Future of Work case shows where Agency and Workload is useful and where a simpler approach may be better.
- Use the idea of “Agency and Workload” to interpret one realistic situation.
- Explain the limits of the concept and the information that still needs to be checked.
Start with the situation
Understand the situation first. The label can come later.
Higher productivity is not healthy when people lose control and their workload keeps growing. This lesson uses the idea of “Agency and Workload” to examine that situation without treating a single term as the answer to every problem.
A small Future of Work case shows where Agency and Workload is useful and where a simpler approach may be better. Manage workload, surveillance, inclusion, team agreements, and role transitions as AI changes work. Connect the term to a decision someone genuinely needs to make.
See how the decision unfolds
Move from the situation to a choice others can review.
01
Situation
Higher productivity is not healthy when people lose control and their workload keeps growing. This lesson uses the idea of “Agency and Workload” to examine that situation without treating a single term as the answer to every problem.
02
Decision
Higher productivity is not healthy when people lose control and their workload keeps growing. Identify the part of the situation most closely connected to the idea of “Agency and Workload”. Use the case as a thinking tool, not as proof that one solution fits every context.
03
Review
Efficiency cannot be the only measure when redesigning work. This mistake often appears when a label is used before the problem is understood. Write down your assumptions so another person can review them.
Do not rush the choice
Two ways to look at Agency and Workload
Useful when
- A small Future of Work case shows where Agency and Workload is useful and where a simpler approach may be better.
- Use the idea of “Agency and Workload” to interpret one realistic situation.
- A small Future of Work case shows where Agency and Workload is useful and where a simpler approach may be better. Manage workload, surveillance, inclusion, team agreements, and role transitions as AI changes work. Connect the term to a decision someone genuinely needs to make.
Pause and check
- Efficiency cannot be the only measure when redesigning work. This mistake often appears when a label is used before the problem is understood. Write down your assumptions so another person can review them.
- Explain the limits of the concept and the information that still needs to be checked.
The stronger choice is the one whose evidence, owner, and limits can be explained, not simply the more sophisticated option.
Visual model
Map the parts before choosing what to do.
Read the diagram as a map of Agency and Workload: begin with the context, follow the connections, and inspect the highlighted point before making a decision.
Pause for a moment
What evidence could change this decision?
Answer before opening the discussion. Name one fact and one assumption.
Open the discussion
A small Future of Work case shows where Agency and Workload is useful and where a simpler approach may be better. Test Agency and Workload on one small case first. Record the expected result, the failure signal, and the point where the decision needs another review. You will make one small decision with Agency and Workload, including a boundary and a signal that triggers another check.
A tempting shortcut
A familiar term can still lead us to the wrong decision.
Why this can seem reasonable
Efficiency cannot be the only measure when redesigning work. This mistake often appears when a label is used before the problem is understood. Write down your assumptions so another person can review them.
How to check it
Test Agency and Workload on one small case first. Record the expected result, the failure signal, and the point where the decision needs another review. Begin with what can be observed, then separate facts, assumptions, and open questions.
Try it on your work
Try it with one small piece of real work.
- Choose one real situation related to Agency and Workload.
- Separate what you can observe from what you are assuming.
- Write one decision, its owner, and the evidence needed to review it.
- Name the signal that would make you stop or change direction.
Write two examples that fit Agency and Workload and one that does not. Explain the difference in your own words. The larger module activity is: Prepare a human-AI work plan that protects both outcomes and team well-being. Keep the first version small enough for another person to review in a few minutes.
Quick practice
Write two examples that fit Agency and Workload and one that does not. Explain the difference in your own words. The larger module activity is: Prepare a human-AI work plan that protects both outcomes and team well-being.
Summary
- A small Future of Work case shows where Agency and Workload is useful and where a simpler approach may be better.
- Use examples and evidence to test your understanding.
- Record the limits, risks, and conditions that should trigger another review.
Continue from here
- Inclusion and Surveillance: Continue the idea from Human-Centered Ways of Working with a closely related example.
- Policies and Risk Tiers: Connect this lesson to Leadership and test the idea in another context.
- Mitigation and Ownership: See how the same decision changes when viewed through AI Ethics.
Sources and further reading
- Artificial intelligence and the world of work: International Labour Organization · official-research. Primary reference for the definition, evidence, or limits discussed in “Agency and Workload”.
- Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence: UNESCO · official-recommendation. Further evidence and context for checking the explanation in “Agency and Workload”.
- A guide to data protection: data minimisation: UK Information Commissioner’s Office · official-guidance. Further evidence and context for checking the explanation in “Agency and Workload”.