How Will Careers Change in the Future?

With technology constantly changing and advancing, it is inevitable that businesses will have to follow that trend if they want to keep up and stay current in today’s market. In ten years, it is projected that 50% of jobs will be replaced by automation. Unfortunately, these trends are showing that low-skill professions will be most at risk. It is projected that the automation and use of artificial intelligence will disrupt 14.6 trillion dollars in wages in the next ten years.

While the use of automation will only eliminate about 5% of overall jobs, it will change how we do our jobs. Employees need to be able to learn these new skills in order to adapt to these changes. Most industries are not providing the training needed to keep up with the technology change. The term for this is called upskilling. While many companies understand the need for upskilling, only a small percentage of them are following through. Retrieved from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/future-of-work/#:~:text=The%20future%20of%20work%20will,communication%20technology%20(ICT)%20specialists.

Along with the technology changes, there are several other changes people may see. One way organizations are changing is by having more project-based teams rather than a flow chart of command. This is appealing to more of the generation Z employees and it allows people the opportunity to have more than one role in the company.

Technology has allowed people to work from almost anywhere in the world. People will now be able to have more flexibility to work remotely and live almost anywhere they want. The new generation of employees is also looking for other things to motivate them, other than just a paycheck. People want more incentives for their work. For example, gym memberships, home office setups, working remote, personal development options and they want to work for a company they can believe in.

With the outlook of technology and artificial intelligence moving into more companies, it is important that we learn to adapt to these changes. In order for employees to be successful, they will need to engage in lifelong learning and understand that their current skill sets are already out of date. Climbing up the corporate ladder is going to be obsolete in the future, and it is up to the employee to find their own path in their career, by having a variety of different skill sets.

Companies will need to assist employees in the lifelong learning process and provide motivation for all their employees with incentives other than a paycheck. Companies will need to rethink how they recruit and how they hire new employees, as they also must adapt to these changes.

Change is always going to happen, however, the more we can prepare for it, the better off we will be. It will not come without challenges; however, it will push us to really look at the future of how the working world is about to change.