Organisation design

What the publications show

1. Several publications see the removal of management layers continuing, with AI as the reason: work organised around technology needs less coordination. An article from Aarhus describes AI as a layer that takes over thinking work, with judgement still left to people.

   One Useful Thing, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Aarhus University, 2026 (opens in a new window) · McKinsey, 2026 (opens in a new window) · World Economic Forum, 2026 (opens in a new window) · McKinsey & Company and EuroCommerce, 2026 (opens in a new window)

2. Deloitte, McKinsey and EuroCommerce, and an article from Innsbruck, raise the question of who directs AI agents once they take steps in the work themselves. In the McKinsey and EuroCommerce survey, 70 per cent of executives see no measurable effect on results yet.

   Deloitte, 2026 (opens in a new window) · McKinsey & Company and EuroCommerce, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Universität Innsbruck, 2026 (opens in a new window)

3. Dutch banks have been cutting thousands of jobs since late 2025, citing AI as a way to save costs. In a survey by the trade union CNV, 63 per cent of respondents in the financial sector say they feel uncertain about the future.

   CNV, 2026 (opens in a new window) · ABN AMRO, 2025 (opens in a new window) · McKinsey, 2025 (opens in a new window)

4. Two publications see the shape of careers changing. At a Swedish consultancy, the fixed career ladder is giving way to several parallel routes, and an American article argues that start-ups using AI grow faster than their systems for learning and development.

   Stockholm University, 2026 (opens in a new window) · The University of Texas at Tyler, 2026 (opens in a new window)

5. One perspective article from Mainz adds a caveat to the emphasis on AI. According to this publication, geopolitical disruption feeds through into the structure of procurement organisations faster than technological disruption does.

   University of Applied Sciences Mainz, 2026 (opens in a new window)

Topics within organisation design

This list shows what the publications on this theme are about, with the number for each topic. Open a topic to see its publications; if a topic has a briefing, the link is underneath.

• Fewer management layers5 publications

  • The Dot and the Swarm · One Useful Thing, 2026
  • AI as a cognitive layer in top-level administrative support · Aarhus University, 2026
  • The State of Organizations 2026: Three tectonic forces that are reshaping organizations · McKinsey, 2026
  • AI at work: Insights from 20 leading technology companies · World Economic Forum, 2026
  • The State of Grocery Retail Europe 2026: Margins under pressure, models in motion · McKinsey & Company and EuroCommerce, 2026
  Briefing: Management layers, AI and the strain on the managers who remain →
• Redesigning work around AI3 publications

  • Becoming an AI-First Company: Six Aspects of Organizational Redesign · Universität Innsbruck, 2026
  • Technological and geopolitical disruptions shaping processes and organization design: implications for purchasing and supply management · University of Applied Sciences Mainz, 2026
  • AI at work: Insights from 20 leading technology companies · World Economic Forum, 2026
  Briefing: Automating tasks versus redesigning work around AI →
• Governing AI agents3 publications

  • Deloitte Report: Winning Organizations Will Build the Human Advantage (2026 Global Human Capital Trends) · Deloitte, 2026
  • The State of Grocery Retail Europe 2026: Margins under pressure, models in motion · McKinsey & Company and EuroCommerce, 2026
  • Becoming an AI-First Company: Six Aspects of Organizational Redesign · Universität Innsbruck, 2026
  Briefing: Who is the agent's boss? Ownership, mandate and control of AI agents →
• Restructuring at banks3 publications

  • Nervositeit over grootschalige reorganisaties, 63% is onzeker over toekomst in financiële sector · CNV, 2026
  • ABN AMRO presenteert strategie voor winstgroei en nieuwe financiële doelen voor 2028 · ABN AMRO, 2025
  • Global Banking Annual Review 2025: Why precision, not heft, defines the future of banking · McKinsey, 2025
  Briefing: Restructuring at Dutch banks and AI in anti-money laundering and customer service →
• Slow decision-making2 publications

  • Unlocking Sustainable Value in Software-Defined Vehicles · AlixPartners, 2026
  • The State of Organizations 2026: Three tectonic forces that are reshaping organizations · McKinsey, 2026
• Learning and careers3 publications

  • Rethinking learning and careers in professional service firms in a new digital landscape: From ladder to lattice · Stockholm University, 2026
  • When Business Ventures Scale Faster Than People Systems: HRD in the AI-Enabled Start-Up Boom · The University of Texas at Tyler, 2026
  • Beyond the 'skills gap': German installation enterprises need organisational restructuring to implement low-carbon transitions · Technische Universität Berlin, 2026

Briefings on this theme

Where several organisations publish roughly the same thing on a topic, we have used AI to compile a briefing. Click a card for the key point, the figures with their sources and what it means for the leadership team.

Briefings on other themes that touch on this one

These briefings belong to another theme but also cover organisation design.