Paul Welty, PhD AI, WORK, AND STAYING HUMAN

Industry-Driven Microcredentials

Industry-Driven Microcredentials
Explore how industry-driven microcredentials meet the demand for on-the-go skills development, enhancing competencies and career prospects.

“The essence of MC reflects competencies required by the industry. Further, it reflects a trend toward on-demand, short-form skills development focused on competencies and specific abilities."—Microcredentials: Why Industry Is in the Driver’s Seat


Featured writing

Why customer tools are organized wrong

This article reveals a fundamental flaw in how customer support tools are designed—organizing by interaction type instead of by customer—and explains why this fragmentation wastes time and obscures the full picture you need to help users effectively.

Infrastructure shapes thought

The tools you build determine what kinds of thinking become possible. On infrastructure, friction, and building deliberately for thought rather than just throughput.

Server-Side Dashboard Architecture: Why Moving Data Fetching Off the Browser Changes Everything

How choosing server-side rendering solved security, CORS, and credential management problems I didn't know I had.

Books

The Work of Being (in progress)

A book on AI, judgment, and staying human at work.

The Practice of Work (in progress)

Practical essays on how work actually gets done.

Recent writing

We always panic about new tools (and we're always wrong)

Every time a new tool emerges for making or manipulating symbols, we panic. The pattern is so consistent it's almost embarrassing. Here's what happened each time.

Dev reflection - February 03, 2026

I've been thinking about constraints today. Not the kind that block you—the kind that clarify. There's a difference, and most people miss it.

When execution becomes cheap, ideas become expensive

This article reveals a fundamental shift in how organizations operate: as AI makes execution nearly instantaneous, the bottleneck has moved from implementation to decision-making. Understanding this transition is critical for anyone leading teams or making strategic choices in an AI-enabled world.

Notes and related thinking

Are You Settling for Less?

Stop settling for less and discover how raising your standards can lead to greater success and fulfillment in life.

Leveling up Skills with AI

Unlock new research and professional opportunities by enhancing your data-analysis, writing, and analytic skills with powerful AI tools.

The Impact of AI on White-Collar Jobs

Explore how AI transforms white-collar jobs, highlighting the balance between automation and the enduring value of skilled human work.