The Future Of Work: The Time To Upskill Is Now

Lisa Campbell, Chief Marketing Officer at software company, Autodesk, believes automation creates opportunity for workers, but that seizing it relies on closing the skills gap.

The debate around the future of work and the impact of automation on workers has raged for decades, but it has been brought into sharp focus by COVID-19. A recent study from PwC indicated that almost 40% of workers believed their job would become obsolete in the next five years, while 60% were worried that automation was putting jobs at risk. Meanwhile, the World Economic Forum estimates that one billion people will need to be reskilled by 2030, driven by the emergence of automation in the workplace. So, are robots coming for people’s jobs? Or will a new era of automation create more opportunity?

Narrowing the skills gap

The skills gap is a very real problem, especially in manufacturing and construction, where demand for skilled workers dramatically outweighs supply. Automation helps to address that shortfall. However, as it becomes more widespread, the risk of the skills gap widening becomes more acute. That’s why a world-wide focus on reskilling and upskilling is critical. The challenge is this: how do we ensure that automation creates opportunity for workers?

Automation will create opportunity if we are deliberate about three things:

1. Building the right kind of transferable skills among workers

2. Stimulating investment in workers by employers

3. Facilitating partnerships between all stakeholders to meet future workforce needs

While collaboration between multiple stakeholders is critical to embracing the future of work, the private sector can lead the way.

The role of private sector in supporting “Future Skills”

The private sector needs to consider how it can support investment in transferable “future skills”. Our work with Factory_OS is a good example of this. Factory_ OS is essentially constructing multi-family housing on a factory production line. In doing so, it is helping to address the housing crisis while opening the industry to underrepresented workers, like women. With a focus on digital technologies, Factory_OS has also taught new skills to 60% of its workforce who were not previously employed in construction and has created new job types based on transferrable “future skills”.

Building simple lifelong learning pathways

Not only do we need governments to strategically invest in industries with quality job growth, but we also need to ensure that workers in those industries are equipped with the right skills. Here, the private sector has a role to play in helping workers learn new skills and gain professional credentials on the job. Many companies have recognized this need, launching or expanding credentialing programs during the last 12 months. Initiatives like the Autodesk certification program offer dozens of online learning pathways that empower professionals to build skills and achieve their goals.

What now?

Without active intervention in helping people prepare for an evolving work environment, some employees may be left behind. The future of work is not a decade away anymore; businesses are already transforming, and jobs are changing. To prepare for the future of work, workers need to start upskilling today.