Microsoft’s Future of Work Leader Says ‘AI Is Not a Tool.’ Here’s Why.

Matthew Duncan is serious about this: Don’t call AI a tool. It’s not surprising that this Microsoft exec whose role is designed to challenge the world on the future of work won’t box in or label AI as a tool but, rather, he sees AI as a “mind shift.”

When Duncan, Head of Thought Leadership on the Future of Work at Microsoft, sat down to talk with HR Daily Advisor recently about AI and the future of work, he made his point clear: “AI is not a tool, but a whole new way of working. It’s one of the most important things that leaders need to think about in this AI transformation—a mind shift.”

“I always love to point out, if Jeff Bezos had gone the way of Barnes & Noble and just made the internet a different channel to distribute books, we wouldn’t be where we are with the greatest e-commerce giant—my ability to click one button and have something at my doorstep. It was the internet as a platform for a whole new way of doing business, period.”

That’s why he’s passionate that “HR managers reimagine the potential of humans and how we can organize, how we collaborate, and how we get work done.”

Duncan delves into how AI can be “tethered or woven into” the workplace as a mind shift. Here are his points:

AI advances employee experience and reduces stress

Duncan’s digital debt research shows that 68% of individuals struggle with the pace and volume of work, spending 60% of their time on emails, chats, and meetings, while only 40% of their time is spent on creating. “This is just the wrong mix of how we should be leveraging human intelligence,” he says.

Duncan says his research has shown that AI can create 40 hours a month of time savings. “That is not only an improvement of efficiency but helps people to be more creative and impactful in the work that they do. What the HR audience should think about is that there is new human and AI collaboration, that there’s an opportunity now to start increasing the productivity of your employees.”

He adds, “AI also not only provides assistance, but is a thought partner, a coach; AI will be extra arms and legs to every employee.” He offers examples of what that means:

• Reducing meeting times. “Everyone is burdened with too many meetings. Employees can use AI to not only translate and get the synthesized information of that meeting but go and ask it questions: When was I mentioned? What were the key topics? What are my takeaways? I can get the value out of it in a couple minutes and not sit through an hourlong meeting.”
• Cutting through communication overload (i.e., overflowing inbox, chat, text). “We’re just burdened. And frankly, we just can’t keep up. So, I have the ability to grab my coffee in the morning and ask, ‘Hey, Copilot, tell me the five things I should focus on this morning. What’s most meaningful? What is my boss and my boss’s boss really looking for?’ ”
• Advancing creativity. Duncan says AI can help improve writing and offer great ideas when you’re stuck.

AI democratizes expertise

Duncan says, “When you look at a set of employees, it is going to offer them a whole new way to learn and grow by utilizing this technology. We’re seeing this in coding; individuals are able to take action, and they don’t have to have the skills because AI is helping them.”

AI is a thought force multiplier

“AI amplifies human ideas and encourages greater results. The concept is that it’s an endless idea machine. It’s going to provide a new perspective that you can utilize in the work that you do,” he says.

Think of AI as a conversation with a friend

“We have been trained to search, right? We need to switch our mindset to utilize generative AI. It’s a conversation—as if I were calling up a friend, ‘Hey, what have you been trying in the Mexican food category? What do you think is good? I like spicy.’ ”

The more context you give AI, you start to have a conversation with AI, and it provides a “whole new perspective of the answer that you’re going to get back,” he says. And through his research, Duncan found that people who find GenAI most appealing are “those individuals who understand how to give context.”

This is an important point for leaders to understand. “We found that people leaders were more in tune [with giving context at work]. You need to give the context so AI can provide better answers along the way,” he says.

Change one process with AI

Duncan challenges HR leaders “to think about the processes that they’re doing today and find one process where you’re going to start to apply AI. [For example], ‘Here are the seven steps that we do, either in recruiting or talent management,’ and start to think, how can we utilize AI to create that efficiency, to offer up different types of expertise, to use agent technology to automate that it’s going to work on my behalf and I’m going to come and work the next morning and it’s going to be done?”

And “ultimately, I’m challenging every employee to explore new ways of working. How does this new conversational intelligence help me analyze or plan or execute the things I need to get done?”

Want to hear more about AI in the workplace? Join Matthew Duncan at HCI’s SPARK HR 2025conference at Lake Buena Vista, April 30–May 2, where HR professionals will hear his full presentation. You’ll also hear about engagement, leadership, and workplace culture from speakers at NASCAR, Chobani, Panasonic, LinkedIn, and more. It’s not just another conference. It’s going to be hands-on, interactive, and a chance to connect with people who really get it. Plus, we’re adding some Disney magic, so you’re going to have a great experience. See you there!

This article is presented in partnership with HR Daily Advisor. HR Query is a Q&A series by HR Daily Advisor that focuses on HR professionals' insights on current HR trends and dives into their personal stories, helping HR peers connect with challenges and opportunities.