Automation is set to wipe out certain jobs
Youth need to make informed subject choices
IF YOU are a telemarketer, cashier, paralegal or an accountant, there is a higher than 80% chance your job won’t exist in 20 years.
A 2013 study by Oxford University academics titled The Future of Employment, which looked at 702 common occupations, found that some jobs – including the above list as well as tax preparers and sports referees – are at more risk of becoming redundant than others. The reason? Technological advancements, which could result in many positions becoming automated in the future.
The UK’s Guardian newspaper lists five occupations, and alongside them their risk percentage of automation:
Telemarketer (99%), loan officer (98%), cashier (97%), legal assistant (94%) and taxi driver (89%).
“Today’s technological revolution is an entirely different beast from the industrial revolution. The pace of change is exponentially faster and far wider in scope,” as Stanford University academic Jerry Kaplan writes in Humans Need Not Apply.
“Today, automation is blind to the colour of your collar. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a factory worker, a financial advisor or a professional flute-player: automation is coming for you,” he says.
This is why Georgina Barrick, managing director of specialised recruitment agencies Cassel&Co, Insource ICT and IT Edge, advises all employees in all industries to become SMART. According to Barrick, SMART is an acronym which stands for Specialist, Mobile, Adaptable, Resilient and Talented – a key for not only surviving but thriving in the new world of work. “It is no secret that the world of work is shifting, and that individuals need to prepare for this changing landscape if they want their skills to remain in demand. And the way to do so, is to become a SMART worker,” she said. “Within the next decade – and we are already seeing this happening to some degree – the traditional employer/employee relationship will largely be a thing of the past.
“By 2030, historical workplace structures will overwhelmingly have been replaced by the concept of workers as consultants and their own bosses, who sell their services to client companies.
“As we move away from the idea of the employee working for one company, depending on that company for everything from their salary to the promise that they will in all likelihood be able to rely on that company for a safe and ongoing income, individuals need to understand how they can navigate the workplace market in the not-sodistant future.”
Barrick said that the World Economic Forum estimates a decline of jobs in sectors which include office administration, manufacturing and production.
She said global research had identified four major important trends that would impact the world of work over the next 15 years and these are flexibility, lifelong learning, quality versus quantity and technological innovation.
“Globally, we are seeing a continuation of the growing trend towards short-term work. According to the International Labour Organisation’s The Changing Nature of Jobs, 75% of the global workforce is currently employed on temporary or short-term contracts.
“It is believed that by 2030, workers will work with, not for, companies and will work with multiple clients simultaneously, joining skills guilds rather than becoming employees. This idea of workers as entrepreneurs will promote flexibility and autonomy – and will benefit high-skill workers,” she said, adding that already the idea of someone studying and then using what they’ve learnt to follow a career at one company throughout their life had become obsolete.
This trend has been replaced by lifelong learning, where workers constantly reskill themselves or renew their skills every five years.
“The emphasis is shifting away from chasing money at all costs to a focus on critical values, like work/life balance, happiness and fulfilment.
“Technology already enables remote work and, as fibre becomes the norm in South Africa, internet speed is no longer the inhibitor it was 10 years ago.
“Over the next 15 years, it’s predicted that rapid technological innovation will promote 24/7 work performed by employees in different geographic locations and time zones. The traditional notion of a “corner office” as we know it today will become obsolete as workers work remotely, hot-desk and collaborate in ways we can’t yet imagine,” Barrick said.
According to the UK Business Insider, industries and jobs which are future-proof include chefs, marketing, communication, design, healthcare professionals, education, cyber security, human resources, logistics and data scientists.
With regards to which careers are currently in demand, Melanie van Vreden, managing member of East London-based recruitment agency Abantu Staffing Solutions, advised a career in information technology (IT).
Van Vreden said this meant not just any IT skills, but specifically program developers, software architects and other specialist IT areas.
There was also a demand for specialised finance skills such as cost accounting, with relevant manufacturing experience, she added.
“The job market is continuously changing and it’s important for young people to research these trends before making their school subject choices or selecting a tertiary qualification.
“East London has had many platforms offering an opportunity to listen to global trends. I took my 15-year-old son [to some of them] so he could get an better idea as to what the future of employment looks like and make educated subject choices.
“With East London having automotive manufacturing as a key industry, electrical engineers with experience in automation and robotic programming are important.
“Our challenge in East London is to keep this skill here, as many candidates have immigrated to America with both their education and skills obtained in South Africa.
“East London has always had opportunities for qualified artisans, both mechanical and electrical, but to remain relevant and earning good salaries, employees need to have a continuous learning approach, up-skilling themselves continuously.”
Both Barrick and Van Vreden said employees and employers needed to become flexible going into the future.
“I do believe that certain positions can never be replaced by robotics as the human touch, as well as reasoning, will always be needed. I get very frustrated at automated responses to important problems.
“We all know those banking and telesales calls that are automated from the start. Who listens to those?
“Moving into the future, companies need to embrace technology and combine it with the human touch, getting the best of what both have to offer. In my industry, for example, algorithms will match applicants’ CVs to job descriptions quicker than a human ever could.
“However, only a consultant will be able to discuss “human elements” such as career plans, personal aspirations and salary expectations,” Van Vreden said.
Barrick added: “Ultimately what all of this means is that individuals need to become more adaptable, and be able to manage their careers with greater resilience and flexibility. Employers will need to be able to manage complexity and ambiguity effectively, and quickly and efficiently identify skills gaps and tap into the freelance market. Employers should start investigating how they can develop collaborative, global, and virtual working environments in order to attract the best talent.” —
It is believed that by 2030, workers will work with, not for, companies and will work with multiple clients simultaneously...