Future Jobs in the World

Technology is ever evolving. Fast advances in technology have historically displaced certain types of work. For example 40% of the population in developed countries was engaged in agriculture 100 years ago. That number is now down to single digits, while at the same time agriculture production volumes has increased manifold. The advancements have taken a much rapid pace today. Let us find out how job opportunities are in store for us in future.

I. Introduction

• A very famous scientist Joseph Schumpeter had once coined a seemingly paradoxical term “Creative Destruction”.

• Any technology that brings a breakthrough can never enjoy same prominence all throughout. For example, 90% of Americans were farmers in 1790, while 1.7% of Americans were farmers in 2011.

• Over those 200 years farm jobs were destroyed by exponential agricultural productivity gains during industrial revolutions and thus got replaced by jobs in new industries.

• Such a change is inevitable and the next industrial revolution would again bring new employment avenues with advanced technological improvements.

• Fast technology advancements is rapidly changing everything around us and it will not be a surprise to see a whole new world in next 5-10 years. We focus on some jobs that do not exist today but would shape the economy tomorrow.

II. The nature of the Future Jobs

• In this radical environment, we can surely predict that the jobs in future is going to be very different.

• It would be a time when machine learning, artificial intelligence, robotics, advanced manufacturing, cloud computing, genetics, and nanotechnology would solve human needs.

In fact, some of the noticeable changes that we see today would lead to spawning of new positions in future. Few of the jobs of future can well be:

• Modern Farmers: The supply chain has been a serious issue for food retail outlets. Also, there has been a declining employment rate in the primary sector. So, with new technology people can produce underground the grocery store and directly sell to customers.


• Augmented Reality Designers: The architects who would display real estate, home décor etc. through augmented reality technology while saving customers’ time and effort.

• Bitcoins Bankers: With crypto currency market rising, we can expect bankers who would suggest investments through bitcoins.

• Talent Pool Manager: With more and more work going to crowdsourcing, there have to be executives who can connect talented pools of people with organization for short term projects.

• 3-D Printing Engineers: Competent people who would design and engineer printer produced products.

• Drone Postmen: E-Commerce items would be dispatched through drones operated by skilled employees.

• Body Part Makers and Specialists: Technology will allow replant of organs for defective body parts by specialists.

• Nano-Equipment Designers: Creators of very small sized items who would help reduce the size of electronics and weapons.

• Robots Officer: With organizations switching to robots for the manual process, there would be need for officers who would monitor their proper functioning.

III. Way Forward

• Technologies developed in any part of the world now takes no time to spread all around.

• Under such a condition, nations should  focus on targeted actions to manage long term workforce with full proof skills, bring down the ever-growing unemployment rate and bridge the organizations-institutions communication gap.

• These efforts are not just to mitigate future risks but also to make sure that nations is able to capitalize on the opportunities presented by the next Industrial Revolution.

• As an immediate focus, businesses and government needs to make use of data analytics for workforce planning, talent management and initiating systematic change. 

• Harnessing digital talent platform would help to complement any new organizational models. In the long term, there has to be a focus on rethinking the education system to imagine what this new century curriculum should look like.

• However, simply reforming current education system to better equip today’s students to meet future skill requirement would not make our businesses globally competitive.

• A wholesale reskilling of existing workforce throughout life cycle is thus also required.
  

IV. Conclusion

• The world tomorrow cannot be fully visualized but can be appropriately imagined.

• It will be a space of new technologies with increased efficiency and better practices.

• With a strong strategic view for that new world, a nation that shows strong potential to keep its workforce ready for the future jobs would present its dominance at the international arena in the next decade.