The Future of Tech Talent in the Age of AI: NYTech Week
This week, Enrich co-hosted a dynamic panel on “The Future of Tech Talent in the Age of AI” with Twill and Bloomberg Beta at NYTech Week. We brought together senior operators, founders, executive recruiters, and exec-level job seekers for a dynamic conversation about navigating leadership careers and hiring in the rapidly evolving tech landscape. Moderated by Lori Berenberg (Investor at Bloomberg Beta), the discussion featured Michelle Volberg (Founder & CEO at Twill), Jen Dunnam (VP of Design at Patreon), and Sairam Rajagopal (Head of Product at Guidepoint).
Referrals remain the gold standard. “The best route to getting your next role is finding someone that can recommend you for the position,” Michelle advised, emphasizing that a warm introduction makes all the difference in getting noticed. Hiring remains a “human-first business.” So, leveraging your network, sending thoughtful messages, and asking for advice are all still excellent strategies (echoing our takeaways from Whitnie’s Networking Masterclass and our recent dinner with Heidrick & Struggles).
This goes both ways: hiring managers should also be thinking about how best to get the right warm intros for their open roles. “Hiring is a human-first business. You’re not in the business of hiring AI agents. You’re a human being, you’re being hired, you’re hiring, so you ultimately want to be introduced to the right people.”Managers should consider getting back into the weeds. Staying close to hands-on work and continuously upskilling is essential as AI reshapes managerial roles and expectations. The concept of a “player-coach” leader isn’t new, but as AI automates more tasks, there’s less demand for managers and leaders who primarily oversee others. If you’re managing a team, you should not only encourage your team to experiment with AI, but also model this behavior yourself.
There’s a growing demand for generalists: those who can wear multiple hats, adapt quickly, and connect dots across disciplines. AI is automating busy work and agents will soon be able to run some specialized workflows end-to-end, so the real value of human employees lies in creativity, communication, and problem-solving. Tech companies are looking to hire people that can connect the dots and operate strategically across functions. That said, technical depth certainly isn’t obsolete: “good engineers will still be in vogue.”
We also discussed how to build a personal brand that gets your your next job, the most important soft skills to develop with the rise of AI, and how to use AI as your co-founder. To get access to the rest of our notes…join Enrich!
