Conference looks at future of workforce
Business confidence has plunged to a fresh two year-low amid political uncertainty.
The ANZ business outlook survey for October showed a net 10 per cent of businesses are pessimistic about the year ahead, meaning more businesses expect general conditions to get worse in the coming year, than the number who expect to see an improvement.
However, the survey does not reflect the business community’s view of the new Government, as most of the responses were collected while coalition negotiations were still ongoing, before the make-up of the new administration was known.
It is the lowest reading in the survey since September 2015 and marks a 10 point fall in a month. The September survey itself marked a sharp fall from August.
‘‘The finger can be pointed at political uncertainty,’’ ANZ chief economist Cameron Bagrie said. ‘‘This month’s survey primarily covers the uncertainty around the outcome and not the outcome itself. The latter will be next month’s story,’’ Bagrie.
ASB senior economist Jane Turner said the bank expected confidence would remain ‘‘subdued’’ in the short term, reflecting uncertainty from a change in Government. ‘‘The fall in businesses’ own activity expectations is more modest than the fall in headline confidence, but points to below-trend growth nonetheless,’’ Turner said.
A net 22 per cent of businesses expect better own company performance in the coming year, but this was an 8 point fall on September. Investment, employment, export and profit expectations all eased slightly. A net 31 per cent of businesses said it was more difficult to obtain credit.
Pessimists outnumbered optimists across all five sectors in the survey, with agriculture the most downbeat.
Bagrie said the change in Government, while unsettling, offered opportunities. ‘‘Change in itself is not the key issue; how you market it, tell the story and take people along with you is the real challenge.’’
BNZ senior economist Craig Ebert said it was not a surprise that confidence had eased however the drop between September and October ‘‘was a bigger drop than we might have imagined’’. A typical worker of the future is likely to have up to four careers, and universities may have to transition to micro accreditations to cater to the corresponding demand for broader skill sets.
In such a fast changing climate, where technology constantly redefines the playing field, there is a growing awareness that future proofing needs to be a top priority, as much for employees as businesses.
A new Wellington conference seeks to explore how workers can do just that, and what Wellington’s ‘new collar future’ might look like.
Conference director John Dow said the term ‘new collar workers’ referred to the diminishing divide between traditional white collar and blue collar workers.
‘‘We are heading towards people having to look at work, employment and carriers in a different way,’’ he said.
‘‘This conference has come about through some in-depth research and consultation with the business community.’’
Dow said it was hoped the conference would act as a catalyst to highlight the concerns, but also the opportunities, that a rapidly changing employment landscape brought.
In order to do so, experts from
"The finger can be pointed at political uncertainty."
Cameron Bagrie, ANZ chief economist
some of the fastest changing fields will speak, including Kaila Colbin, an expert in artificial intelligence and the workings of cryptocurrency, and Kendra Ross, who will speak on the growing importance of the cyber security industry.
The changes also has health implications, with Dow saying a new breed of workaholic screen-junkies were experiencing mental strains never before studied by health professionals.
❚ The Work in Progress conference will be held at the St James Theatre in Wellington on November 8.