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New technologies are changing the world we live in. The society changes, the economy changes, and with that, the jobs change. The implementation of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Big Data or Internet of Things are driving the demand for new professional profiles that we did not even conceive a decade ago. In addition, the possibilities of automating tasks currently developed by humans, executing task more quickly and efficiently, leads some professionals to consider that their job could be in danger. Responding to this situation is one of the big challenges we have to overcome.
According to the report It's learning. Just not as we know. How to accelerate skills acquisition in the age of intelligent technologies, carried out by G20 Young Entrepreneurs' Alliance and Accenture, if skill-building doesn’t catch up with the rate of technological progress, the G20 economies could lose up to US$11.5 trillion in cumulative GDP growth in the next ten years.
But this change is not simple. It is not correct just to assume that intelligent technologies will eliminate some jobs and create new ones. In fact, the biggest effect will be the evolution of traditional roles. According to the study, 90% of each worker time will be affected by new technologies. Taking the average of all sectors, 38% of worker time is currently dedicated to tasks that will be automated, while 51% are activities that can be improved (or augmented), using new technologies that help to increase our skills. In short, the solution is not just to train more engineers or data analysts, since even these profiles will have to evolve to adapt to a future that is closer than it seems.
To know how this change will affect the different professional profiles, the report analyse the tasks and skills necessary to carry out the current work positions, determining how they will evolve in the future. To facilitate the analysis, the professions have been grouped around 10 different roles. The following table shows the result of the study:
| Role cluster | Typical activities | Illustrative occupations | Illustrative task evolution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Management & Leadership | Supervises and takes decisions | Corporate managers and education administrators | Marketing managers handle data and take decisions based on social media and web metrics |
| Empathy & Support | Provides expert support and guidance | Psychiatrists and nurses | Nurses can focus on more patient care rather than administration and form filling |
| Science & Engineering | Conducts deep, technical analyzes | Chemical engineers and computer programmers | Researchers focus on sharing, explaining and applying their work, rather than being trapped in labs |
| Process & Analysis | Processes and analyzes information | Auditors and clerks | Accountants can ensure quality control rather than crunch data |
| Analytical subject-Matter Expertise | Examines and applies experience of complex systems | Air traffic controllers and forensic science technicians | Information security analysts can widen and deepen searches, supported by AI-powered simulations |
| Relational subject-matter Expertise | Applies expertise in environments that demand human interaction | Medical team workers and interpreters | Ambulance dispatchers can focus on accurate assessment and support, rather than logistical details |
| Technical Equipment maintenance | Installs and maintains equipment and machinery | Mechanics and maintenance workers | Machinery mechanics work with data to predict failure and perform preventative repairs |
| Machine Operation & Manoeuvring | Operates machinery and drives vehicles | Truck drivers and crane operators | Tractor operators can ensure data-guided, accurate and tailored treatment of crops, whilst “driving”. |
| Physical Manual Labor | Performs strenuous physical tasks in specific environments | Construction and landscaping workers | Construction workers reduce re-work as technology predicts the location and nature of physical obstacles |
| Physical Services | Performs services that demand physical activity | Hairdressers and cooks | Transport attendants can focus on customer needs and service rather than technical tasks |
The results show how some skills, such as administrative management, will decline in importance. However, for almost every single role described in the previous table, a combination of complex reasoning, creativity, socio-emotional intelligence and sensory perception skills will be necessary.
The problem is that these types of skills are acquired with experience. The current education and learning systems, both regulated and corporate, are not designed to address this revolution, so it will be also necessary their evolution. To facilitate this transition, the report provides a series of recommendations:
- Speed up experiential learning: Teaching has traditionally been based on a passive model, consisting of absorbing knowledge by listening or reading. However, experiential learning becomes more and more powerful, that is, through the practical application of knowledge. This would be the case of airplane pilots, who learn through flight simulation programs. New technologies, such as augmented reality or artificial intelligence, help to make these solutions based on experience more personalized and accessible, covering a greater number of sectors and job positions.
- Shift focus from institutions to individuals: Inside a work team it is common to found workers with different capacities and abilities, in such a way that they complement each other, but, as we have seen, it is also necessary to put more emphasis on expanding the variety of skills of each individual worker, including new skills such as creativity and socio-emotional intelligence. The current system does not drive the learning of these subjects, so it is necessary to design metrics and incentives that encourage the mix of skills in each person.
- Empower vulnerable learners: Learning must be accessible to all employees, in order to close the current skills gap. According to the study, in general, the most vulnerable workers to technological change are the least qualified, because their jobs tend to be easier to automate. However, they also tend to receive the least training from the company, something that must change. Other groups to pay attention to are the older workers and those from small companies, with fewer resources. An increasing number of companies are using modular and free MOOC courses to facilitate the equal acquisition of skills among the entire workforce. In addition, some governments, such as France or Singapore, are providing training aids.
In short, we are in a moment of change. It is necessary to stop and reflect on how our work environment will change in order to adapt ourselves to it, acquiring new skills that provide us with competitive advantages in our professional future.
