New research has revealed that Generation Alpha (people born from 2010 onwards) expect their jobs to be radically different from those of their parents, from the end of the daily commute and email to recurring work with robots.
Produced by the International Workplace Group (IWG), a global leader in hybrid work solutions and owner of the Regus, Spaces, and HQ brands, a new study conducted with young people aged 11 to 17 and their parents, all residing in the UK and the US, asked questions about how they expect the work environment to have changed by 2040 – when Generation Alpha is expected to represent the majority of the workforce.
The survey showed that nearly nine out of ten (86%) members of Generation Alpha expect their professional lives to have transformed compared to those of their parents, making the office routine unrecognizable compared to today's practices.
Daily commute phased out by 2040
One of the most striking changes predicted concerns commuting. Less than a third (29%) of Generation Alpha expect to spend more than 30 minutes commuting to work every day—the current standard for many parents—with most anticipating having the flexibility to work from home or closer to where they live.
Three-quarters (75%) said that reducing time wasted commuting would be a priority, allowing them to spend more time with their own families should they become parents in the future.
Robots and AI will become commonplace, and email will be a thing of the past.
The study also explored important technological predictions, which focus heavily on artificial intelligence (AI) – a finding that is hardly surprising in 2025. For 88% of Generation Alpha, the use of intelligent assistants and robots will be a regular part of daily life.
Other expected technological advances include virtual reality headsets for 3D virtual meetings (38%), gaming areas (38%), rest pods (31%), customized temperature and lighting settings (28%), and augmented reality meeting rooms (25%).
And perhaps in the boldest prediction of all, a third (32%) say that email will be dead, replaced by new platforms and technologies that enable more efficient collaboration.
Hybrid work will underpin the new reality.
The research also found that hybrid work will be the standard model. For 81%, flexible work will be the norm in 2040, with employees having the freedom to choose how and where to work.
Only 17% of Generation Alpha expect to work in a main office full-time, with most splitting their time between home, local workspaces, and the central headquarters, ensuring they can perform their tasks as efficiently as possible. Among the main benefits of moving away from a rigid in-office model are reduced stress caused by commuting (51%), more time with friends and family (50%), improved health and well-being (43%), and more productive workers (30%).
This flexibility is expected to increase productivity to such an extent that a third (33%) of Generation Alpha believe the four-day work week will be the norm. In the US, 22% of workers say their employer offers a four-day week, according to the '2024 Work in America Survey' conducted by The Harris Poll in partnership with the American Psychological Association.
“The data reveals a very clear shift in mindset among young people who will soon make up the majority of the workforce. In Brazil, we are already seeing a growing demand for flexible models that bring people closer to where they live and provide a better quality of life,” says Tiago Alves, CEO of IWG Brazil . “Companies that understand this trend and structure hybrid operations now will be better prepared to attract Generation Alpha talent and compete in an increasingly technological and decentralized professional environment,” he adds.
“The next generation of workers has made it clear: flexibility about where and how to work is not optional, it’s essential. The current generation grew up watching their parents waste time and money on long daily commutes, and the technology available today has essentially made that redundant,” says Mark Dixon, founder and CEO of IWG . “Technology has always shaped the world of work and will continue to do so. Thirty years ago, we saw the transformative impact of the widespread adoption of email, and today, the advent of AI and robots is having an equally profound impact—influencing how and where Generation Alpha will work in the future,” adds the executive.
