You're not new to disruption. But generative AI isn't changing how you do the work — it's producing the work itself. The writing. The tone. The craft. I want to understand what that actually feels like, from the inside.
Previous waves of automation displaced hands. This one displaces minds. For the first time, the jobs most exposed are knowledge work, creative work, professional expertise. The IMF calls it one of the most significant labour market shifts in modern history.
We count jobs lost and created. We track productivity. What we don't measure is what happens to a person's sense of self when the work that made them who they are starts to change — not through redundancy, but through slow, task-by-task encroachment. That damage starts well before any formal change.
Writing. Editing. Content strategy. PR. Policy. Editorial. These roles are built on language and authorship — the craft of shaping how stories get told. That is exactly what generative AI now produces. For other professions, AI assists. For communications professionals, AI is producing the very output their identity is built on.
Workforce researchers are asking: how many jobs are at risk? How do we reskill people? Those are the right questions and they're being worked on. What isn't being studied is what this does to people on the inside — the moment you start wondering whether what you bring still matters. That gap is what this research is here to fill.
"I want to understand where people feel the fracture — and what helps make the transition more whole."
— Neha Bhardwaj, Researcher
New Zealand is a small place. When something shifts in a profession here, everyone in it feels it quickly — and there are fewer places to move to.
In 2025, New Zealand was among the countries with the highest rates of AI-related job displacement globally. 87% of NZ organisations surveyed said roles changed or disappeared due to AI in the last year alone. Unlike larger economies, there are fewer buffers here — fewer industries to move into, smaller professional networks to lean on.
This research is set in Aotearoa because the people going through this here deserve research that reflects their actual experience — not data extrapolated from the US or UK.
of NZ organisations said roles changed or disappeared due to AI in the last year
of NZ organisations say junior employees have fewer development opportunities — highest of any country surveyed
Reskilling and reemployment matter. Economic impact matters. That research is being done and it's important.
What isn't being studied is what this does to people on the inside — the slow erosion of confidence, the question you can't easily ask your manager: who am I at work now?
This study focuses on communications professionals in Aotearoa — people whose craft is language and authorship, which is exactly what AI now produces. Through in-depth conversations, it asks: where does the fracture start? What helps people find their footing again? And what would a better-supported transition actually look like?
I'd like to talk to you. One conversation. Your story, in your words.