What happens when employees can do more than their organizations allow? As AI takes on execution, people are gaining the ability to direct work, make decisions, and own outcomes. But most organizations are not built to absorb that shift.
In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Jared Spataro, Chief Marketing Officer, AI at Work at Microsoft, to explore the findings behind the 2026 Microsoft Work Trend Index—and the growing gap between individual capability and organizational readiness.
Together, they unpack what Microsoft calls “blocked agency,” the emerging reality where employees are ready to operate at a higher level but are held back by outdated structures, metrics, and management practices. The conversation explores how AI is shifting work from execution to decision-making, why the most advanced users sometimes choose not to use AI, and how “frontier professionals” are already redesigning work around agents.
Spataro shares what separates “frontier firms” from the rest, why organizational culture and management practices matter more than individual skill, and how both bottom-up experimentation and top-down leadership are required to unlock real value. He also offers a look at what’s already changing inside software development—and why that transformation is a preview of what’s coming across all knowledge work.
If you’re trying to understand why AI isn’t delivering the impact organizations expected—or what it will take to redesign work around it — this is a conversation you won’t want to miss.
Want to dive deeper into this topic? Read Nirit’s Forbes article, ”AI Is Expanding Employee Agency. Why Most Organizations Block It”, to explore these ideas further.
Guest Information:
Jared leads efforts to help every organization leverage AI to solve their unique business problems, reduce costs, and drive net-new value creation. Jared and his team conduct research to help predict and shape what the future of work and business will look like across industries, while also delivering new products and features within Copilot, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Power Platform.
Links:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/worklab/work-trend-index
Chapters:
00:00 – How AI Is Changing Work In 2026
01:48 – 2026 Microsoft Work Trend Index
02:43 – What Kind Of Work People Use AI For Today
04:01 – Who Are Frontier Professionals In AI
06:01 – Why The Best AI Users Know When Not To Use AI
06:55 – Will AI Hurt Learning And Skill Development At Work
08:35 – What Is Blocked Agency At Work
09:14 – Why Organizations Block AI Impact
10:38 – Can Managers Unlock AI Without Changing Culture
11:10 – How One Employee Can Change AI Culture At Work
13:06 – Why Fear Blocks AI Adoption In Organizations
14:57 – Why AI Training Alone Doesn’t Work
15:39 – What Is A Learning Organization In The Age Of AI
17:46 – What Are Frontier Firms Doing Differently With AI
18:09 – How AI Is Changing Jobs From Doers To Managers
20:26 – What Happens If Organizations Get AI Right
22:27 – Can Companies Transform Fast Enough For AI
23:39 – Why The Future Of Work Is Not About Efficiency
