Two major companies in the past two days have announced thousands of collective layoffs as they pursueAI-driven efficiency, and one expert says it's just the beginning.
WiseTech Global yesterday revealedthat as part of its ongoing efficiency drive, about 2000 workers were expected to lose their job in 2026-2027.
The day before, it emergedCommonwealth Bank will cut 300 jobs of its own.
Major organisations are turning to AI and cutting employees.(Getty)
But TP Australia's vice-president of customer experience strategy, Richard Valente, who works with major businesses on AI customer experience transformation and workplace strategy, said these decisions weren't just about trimming costs, but fundamentally redesigning what an employee is.
This isn't a cyclical job cut. It's a structural reset of the workforce, Valente said.
The era of large, transaction-processing teams is ending. Banks are moving to smaller, highly specialised workforces who manage AI systems, interpret complex data and step in when things go wrong.
Valente said the recent announcements reflected a broader global trend of organisations racing to embed AI into customer operations while redefining human roles.
And he said the bar would be raised for those humans who remained onboard.
The future frontline banker won't just process requests, they'll be problem solvers, relationship managers and trust builders, Valente said.
Valente said customers would still want good service.(Getty)
But it's possible the strategy, being adopted by businesses at an increasingly accelerated rate, could backfire.
Valente warned the biggest risk for businesses would be focusing too heavily on automation without maintaining customer experience standards.
If organisations treat AI purely as a productivity tool, they risk eroding trust, he said.
Customers will still want empathy, reassurance and human judgement, particularly when dealing with money, fraud or financial hardship.
Valente said successful companies would be those that balanced automation with investment in workforce capability.
The real competitive edge won't come from AI alone, it will come from how effectively organisations retrain, redeploy and empower their people to work alongside it, he said.
Organisations also need to ensure they show empathy and understanding to those who are being displaced to protect their own brand.
Providing training, services and Australian AI platforms which assist displaced people to build their own future career path.
