ILROB 4235 - Technology in the Modern Workplace

Spring. 4 credits. Letter grades only.

I. Ajunwa.

This course traces the evolution of technology in the workplace starting with the Industrial Revolution, the introduction of computers and digital technology, and, finally, the rise of machine learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the workplace. The course will discuss the connection between those technological changes, management practices, and labor movements. The course will also provide an introduction to theoretical debates associated with the impact of technology in the workplace. Part of the course will also examine how a technological infrastructure (or lack thereof) influences emerging economies in Africa, Asia, and Latin-America. The course will encourage students to think through how emerging technological trends might change the organizational culture of corporations and institutions and what this means for the future of work. Finally, the students will be called upon, as their final paper, to envision the ideal workplaces of the future, as foretold by emerging technologies.