The Best of This Week
The week’s must-reads for managing in the digital age, curated by the MIT SMR editors.
Topics
Weekly Recap
For Remote Teams, How and Who Outweigh Where
The corporate world faces constantly shifting circumstances and ongoing uncertainty as many employers plan a return to offices. But research shows that with the right people and collaborative processes, remote work can be at least as effective as in-person work.
The Benefits and Risks of Synthetic Data
It’s often difficult to access the real-world data needed to train models or gain insights, due to privacy and security concerns or simply process issues. But new AI techniques for generating look-alike data sets can help data scientists develop machine learning models more quickly and at greater scale.
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Building Robots, Sustainably
While there has been criticism of the material waste that consumer electronics create and the energy needed to train AI algorithms, robots haven’t drawn the same attention, because they mostly labor out of the public eye. But as governments and environmental groups try to figure out how to meet climate goals, some roboticists are pushing their ideas for reimagined robots made of recycled, biodegradable, and replaceable parts.
How the Skill of Delegation Can Strengthen Remote Teams
Managers of remote teams who improve their delegation skills can help solve the biggest impediment to their success — virtual distance — by closing physical, operational, and affinity gaps. New research has identified a number of habits to help managers build the crucial skill of delegation.
What Else We’re Reading This Week
- Companies must carefully weigh potential outcomes before taking a public stance on controversial issues (Source: MIT SMR)
- From the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy, the new 2021 platform strategy report (Source: MIT IDE)
- Amid the Great Resignation, a huge number of Americans are imagining a new relationship with their careers (Source: BuzzFeed News)
- Responding to a seemingly endless chip shortage, automakers may reduce the number of chips needed in new cars and trucks (Source: Reuters)
Quote of the Week:
“It’s pretty clear that AI is shaping our lives, even in a setting like the movies. But how content is created, that side of the business, hasn’t really evolved.”
— Kartik Hosanagar, professor at The Wharton School and founder of Jumpcut, in the latest Me, Myself, and AI podcast episode, “Democratizing Data in Hollywood”