--- description: Breaking news and analysis from time.com. Politics, world news, photos, video, tech reviews, health, science, and entertainment news. title: Charter 30: Thomas Kochan image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8fbbf0e844673320/698a550ecabb1dbcd1e53f22/charter-30-kochan.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- The information presented here is created by Charter, independently from the TIME editorial staff.  Time charter * [Charter 30](/partner-content/charter/tag/charter-30/) ## Charter 30 Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Charter 30: Thomas Kochan  by [Michelle Peng](/author/michelle-peng/) Mar 22, 2024 4:05 PM CUT  Art: Charter  by [Michelle Peng](/author/michelle-peng/) Mar 22, 2024 4:05 PM CUT ## Post-tenure professor, MIT Sloan School of Management; faculty member, MIT Institute for Work and Employment Research _Read the full list of Charter 30 honorees_ [_here_](https://www.charterworks.com/tag/charter-30/ "undefined"), _and learn more about Charter Pro_ [_here_](https://www.charterworks.com/pro/ "undefined")_._ [Kochan](https://mitsloan.mit.edu/faculty/directory/thomas-kochan?ref=charterworks.com "undefined") is a leading voice in employee and labor-management relations. He has argued for a new social contract between workers and organizations that allows all workers to thrive, as detailed in his 2021 book, _Shaping the Future of Work: A Handbook for Action and a New Social Contract_. In recent years, he has also identified a widening [voice gap](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0019793918806250 "undefined") in American workplaces, which he describes as “the difference between what workers say they ought to have and what they experience on the job.” In addition to identifying larger trends across organizations, Kochan’s team has developed metrics and assessments that leaders can implement to empower employees within their own workplaces. **Right now, what is your biggest question or curiosity about the future of work?** The biggest question facing those curious about the future of work is whether the current upsurge in worker efforts to gain a stronger voice at work will turn out to be just a temporary flash in the pan or the beginning of a sustained trend to rebalance power and build a new more equitable and productive social contract at work. **What is one problem leaders should be focused on solving in the year ahead?** Business, labor, and government policy leaders need to find ways to bring workers’ voices into the development, design, and use of new AI technologies so these new tools both drive innovation in responsible ways and improve the quality of jobs and employment opportunities. --- ## Read more from Charter [READ MORE](https://time.com/partner-content/charter/) [Open article: Charter 30: Dag Folger](https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959442/charter-30-dag-folger/)  ### Charter 30: Dag Folger [READ MORE](https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959442/charter-30-dag-folger/) [Open article: Charter 30: Prithwiraj Choudhury](https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959430/charter-30-prithwiraj-choudhury/)  ### Charter 30: Prithwiraj Choudhury [READ MORE](https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959430/charter-30-prithwiraj-choudhury/) [Open article: Charter 30: David Glasgow and Kenji Yoshino](https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959449/charter-30-david-glasgow-and-kenji-yoshino/)  ### Charter 30: David Glasgow and Kenji Yoshino [READ MORE](https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959449/charter-30-david-glasgow-and-kenji-yoshino/) --- ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959457/charter-30-thomas-kochan/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959457/charter-30-thomas-kochan/"},"headline":"Charter 30: Thomas Kochan","datePublished":"2024-03-22T16:05:31.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-28T07:07:25.984Z","description":"Our list of the leaders, thinkers, and innovators shaping the future of work.","url":"https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959457/charter-30-thomas-kochan/","keywords":[],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8fbbf0e844673320/698a550ecabb1dbcd1e53f22/charter-30-kochan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michelle Peng","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/michelle-peng/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8fbbf0e844673320/698a550ecabb1dbcd1e53f22/charter-30-kochan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"charter-30-kochan.jpg","caption":"","creditText":"","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/partner-content/charter/6959457/charter-30-thomas-kochan/","name":"Charter 30: Thomas Kochan"}}]}] ```