Deel’s Nick Catino breaks down the new reality of work as AI reshapes roles

Across the world, leaders and employees are waking up to how rapidly AI is reshaping industries, job roles, and the very definition of human strength at work. The workforce of the future won’t be defined by static skills, because AI is already taking over many of those. Instead, it will be defined by how fluently people work with AI, how quickly they adapt to new technologies, and how deeply they lean into human strengths, resilience, agility, collaboration, shared goals, and accountability. 

Leaders will increasingly have to confront concerns highlighted in Deel’s latest research: shifting career pathways, AI-related anxiety, burnout, and the need to guide employees as their roles evolve. In this exclusive interview, Nick Catino, Global Head of Policy at Deel, breaks down exactly how this shift will unfold, and what global leaders and organizations must do to ensure their people win by combining their human superpowers with AI. He also hints at what might happen if leaders fail to act now. 

 Read Catino’s insights below: 

Catino: Our research with IDC shows that AI is no longer an experiment. 71% of companies have already moved beyond pilot projects. 91% percent say roles have changed or been displaced. And 66% expect to slow entry-level hiring. That tells me the foundation of work is shifting in real time. 

The first jobs to change are simple, task-based roles. Those used to be the foothold for junior workers. At the same time, entirely new roles are appearing fast, such as AI tutors, AI trainers, and even roles we created at Deel like AI librarians. 

The workforce of 2026 will need to adapt. Workers who build AI fluency and practical skills will be in a much stronger position. Companies and governments will need to support that transition. 

Catino: It is a real concern, but it is also something companies can manage well if they are intentional. Many entry-level tasks are being automated, but the tasks themselves were never the valuable part of early work. It is the job experience that matters. 

So instead of preserving outdated tasks, the focus should be on redesigning early-career pathways that still give junior employees real responsibility, exposure to judgment-based work, and time with managers, maybe even giving them more early career experience in the process. 

Done well, leaders emerge faster. Done poorly, the pipeline weakens. The goal is to reinvent early-career opportunity, not reduce it. 

Catino: Low engagement usually means employees do not see the training as useful or doable. In Singapore and other parts of Asia, workloads are already heavy. 

Companies can improve this with a few practical steps. Make training specific to what the role requires. Carve out protected time so it does not compete with other responsibilities. Be open about how jobs will change and what support employees will receive. Managers need to model new behaviours. 

Organisations should also invest in credible trainers or internal AI coaches who can teach hands-on, role-relevant skills. When employees see small wins that reduce workload, engagement rises quickly. 

Catino: The ladder is not disappearing, but the lower rungs are changing. AI now completes many of the repetitive tasks that used to give junior employees their start. 

That creates understandable anxiety, but it also opens the door to better early-career roles that focus on judgment, oversight and using AI tools effectively. 

Roles like this give junior employees meaningful learning from day one. Career pathways will remain. The entry point is changing, and companies will need to redesign early-career roles so young workers can still build experience and grow. 

Catino: Roles with a high volume of repetitive, process-driven tasks face the greatest disruption risk. That includes entry-level administrative work, routine analytical support and basic operations. 

Younger employees often feel these changes first because these tasks have traditionally gone to junior staff. Many industries are turning this into an opportunity.

Across Deel’s platform, we have seen nearly one thousand AI tutor and trainer roles created since 2023. Hiring for AI talent among non-tech firms has increased thirty percent this year. Companies that redesign roles around AI tools are improving both competitiveness and job quality. 

Catino: Trust is improving, but it is not perfect. Demand for AI talent is rising much faster than supply. AI job titles on Deel have tripled since 2023, and salaries for these roles are now about 120 percent higher than salaries across other functions. 

In this environment, companies cannot rely only on degrees. They need evidence that someone can use AI tools responsibly and effectively. 

Catino: This looks more like a supply and demand crunch than a bubble. Companies are seeing real productivity and revenue gains from people who can apply AI effectively. 

A true bubble would require AI hiring to grow in ways that are disconnected from business value, and we are not seeing that today.  

Catino: The challenge is not only financial. It is the complexity that comes with large-scale change. Singapore ranks third worldwide in reporting budget pressure related to AI adoption. 

Reskilling workers requires time and resources. Nearly half of companies say they lack internal AI expertise. More than a third are also concerned about privacy, ethics and compliance issues. 

Catino: The most important step is to embed AI into daily work, while closing talent gaps at the same time. 

Redesign workflows so every team has clear use cases, protected time to learn and expectations from managers to use AI tools regularly. 

Some companies even expand and hire globally for scarce AI skills and reskill existing teams, so capability expands beyond a small expert group. Doing both together gives companies immediate speed and long-term sustainability.