The Great Reshuffle: AI Isn’t Replacing Jobs, It’s Redesigning Them
The recent layoffs at Block, the US-based payment and fintech company, attributed to AI automating tasks previously done by engineers, sparked widespread concern. Similar actions are gaining attention, fueling fears of AI-driven job cuts. However, Gartner’s analysis reveals a different trend: AI isn’t causing massive layoffs, but rather a significant shift in how operate is done.
Only 1% of the 1.4 million layoffs tracked in 2025 were directly attributed to AI-driven productivity gains. As Gartner’s AI strategy team analyst, Nate Suda, explains, “AI is changing the nature of work more than it is eliminating jobs. What we’ll see in the near future isn’t mass layoffs, but job redesign, hiring freezes, and role consolidation.”
Which Roles Are Most at Risk?
Workflow-centric roles are most vulnerable. This includes positions like service desk personnel, business analysts, and project managers. “Routine tasks that produce deliverables like tickets, documents, and status templates will be automated,” says Suda. “Headcount will be compressed, and the human role will shift towards knowledge organization, exception handling, workflow design, and, crucially, cross-departmental tasks.”
The Quiet Trends: Hiring Freezes and Role Integration
A Resume.org survey of 1,000 US business leaders confirms a trend towards hiring freezes. 21% of companies have already halted entry-level hiring due to AI, with a projected 50% doing so by 2027. One in three companies anticipates entry-level positions being eliminated by the end of 2026.
Layoffs aren’t always directly linked to AI. Oracle’s planned layoffs, reportedly in the thousands, are tied to investments in AI-related data centers. Large tech companies are undergoing a “contraction of existing businesses and a shift towards new markets created by AI,” according to Suda.
However, Suda cautions that companies outside the tech sector shouldn’t necessarily mirror these moves. “The actions of big tech aren’t a signal for other industries to follow. It doesn’t make sense for a company that doesn’t deal with AI-related hardware, software, or services—like a transportation company—to do the same.”
AI: Reshaping, Not Replacing, the Workforce
Many IT professionals, particularly those with seniority, anticipate that AI will take over repetitive tasks, allowing them to broaden their responsibilities and take on more cross-functional roles. Senior software engineers, for example, may expand their work into areas traditionally handled by business analysts or product managers.
“This allows people to do things they couldn’t previously due to time constraints. High core competencies can be leveraged across other areas using AI. This is the essence of ‘role integration’,” Suda explains.
Younger IT workers are encouraged to proactively embrace AI to accelerate skill development.
Four Potential Scenarios for the AI Era
Gartner envisions four potential future work scenarios:
- A small number of humans working alongside AI as a complement.
- Many humans using AI to perform higher-quality work.
- Innovative workers collaborating with AI to push the boundaries of knowledge.
- Organizations functioning almost entirely with AI.
Suda notes that these scenarios can coexist within a single organization, varying by department.
The key message for CIOs? “The success of your AI strategy hinges on collaboration with HR.” Personnel planning must consider the distinct impact of AI on different IT roles – service desks, coding, and project management each require separate analysis.
IT Leaders Weigh In
Many IT leaders agree with Gartner’s predictions.
Adam Wachtel, CTO of HR platform provider Click Boarding, believes that junior engineers, entry-level QA testers, and network administrators are particularly susceptible to AI’s influence in the near future.
“These jobs won’t disappear, but integration will occur. Leveraging agentic AI frameworks to automate routine tasks, facilitate knowledge transfer, and provide after-hours support will enable smaller teams to accomplish more. However, human intervention and oversight will still be necessary for the foreseeable future,” Wachtel says.
Chris Willis, Chief Design Officer and Futurist at data platform Domo, adds, “Large organizations are designed to keep people in their lanes. AI doesn’t care about those lanes.”
Willis predicts that AI will handle tasks like data preparation, dashboard maintenance, and ticket resolution, allowing IT to focus on higher-value, strategic responsibilities – governing AI systems, defining business logic, ensuring data quality, and managing model risk.
“AI isn’t replacing IT; it’s removing friction from IT. A shift in roles is happening.” Willis advises CIOs to invest in their team’s AI literacy, consolidate disparate AI tools into a governed platform, and clearly define the scope of human involvement in critical processes.
“The correct response to major technological shifts isn’t ‘headcount reduction,’ but ‘capability redesign.’ For the time being, we’ll need more—not fewer—people to build, govern, and guide these systems,” Willis concludes.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Will AI definitely lead to job losses? Gartner’s data suggests AI is more likely to *reshape* jobs than eliminate them entirely, leading to role consolidation and redesign.
- Which skills will be most valuable in the age of AI? Skills related to knowledge management, exception handling, workflow design, and cross-departmental collaboration will be highly sought after.
- What should IT leaders do to prepare? Invest in AI literacy for their teams, consolidate AI tools, and clearly define human roles in AI-driven processes.
- Are all industries equally affected? No. Companies heavily involved in AI development and deployment will experience the most significant changes.
Pro Tip: Focus on developing skills that complement AI, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication. These uniquely human abilities will remain invaluable.
What are your thoughts on the future of work in the age of AI? Share your insights in the comments below!
