OrgTech: How Technology Is Changing the Work of Management | Phanish Puranam

TECH TALK X, 3 June 2026, 12.00 PM CET by https://digital.insead.edu Most conversations about technology and work focus on tasks: which jobs will be automated, which skills will matter and what humans will still do. But a growing class of technologies is changing something deeper: how organisations coordinate work, allocate decisions, monitor performance and use managerial authority. In this TECH TALK, INSEAD Professor Phanish Puranam was joined by his co-authors Piyush Gulati, Assistant Professor, UCL School of Management and Arianna Marchetti, Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, Singapore Management University, to discuss the idea of OrgTech: technologies that change how organisations divide work, coordinate teams, allocate decisions, monitor performance and resolve exceptions. Drawing on their research into collaborative work management tools such as Jira, Asana and Smartsheet, the discussion will explore how technology can reshape hierarchy, reduce the need for supervision and shift the balance between centralization and decentralization. The discussion explores what this means for AI, managers and the future of organisation design. For leaders, the key question is not only which tasks technology can automate, but what kind of organisation technology helps create. Why watch? • Understand why the impact of technology on organisations goes beyond automation and job redesign. • Learn how OrgTech can change hierarchy, supervision, coordination and decision-making. • Explore when technology decentralizes work and when it can increase control. • Consider what AI may mean for managers, teams and the future of organization design. • Reflect on how leaders can build organisations that are both more effective and more human-centric. Visit digital@INSEAD for more resources on global digital transformation: https://digital.insead.edu/ • Sign up for INSEAD programmes on digital transformation and innovation: https://www.insead.edu/executive-education • Visit digital@INSEAD for more resources on global digital transformation: https://digital.insead.edu/ • Visit INSEAD Knowledge for general expert opinions and management insights: https://knowledge.insead.edu/ • Join the INSEAD community on the Learning Hub: https://www.insead.edu/learning-hub