What You Need To Know About The Future Of Jobs

No matter which way you look at it, work is a massive part of our lives. We study so that we can get a decent job, which will hopefully provide enough money for fun times and a rewarding enough challenge to not go crazy. We all gotta work, so it’s best to find something you actually like doing. Not only that, but the workforce is changing dramatically, and if you’re at school or uni now, the workforce will look at lot different by the time you finish.

On July 28, an organisation called Startup Australia released a report called Economy in Transition. Over the course of 20 pages, it predicts the future of work in Australia. Here’s a link, if you want to read the whole thing, otherwise, here are the main points.

Robots and AI

At risk of sounding like a crazy sci-fi nerd, I have to tell you that robots and artificial intelligence (AI) are actually a real thing now. Essentially, when we talk about robots and AI, we mean computers and automated machines. In Australia, as many as 40% of jobs will become obsolete in the next 10 to 15 years–these jobs will be replaced by computers and semi-autonomous machines. A perfect example is driverless cars, which basically use Google maps, a bunch of sensors and a lot of computing power to navigate the roads.

AI, in this case, is an algorithm that monitors data and adapts accordingly. The most obvious example is the Facebook newsfeed, which becomes personalised based on your likes, shares and comments, both yours and everybody elses. But algorithms can do more important stuff too, like providing a medical diagnosis based on reported symptoms and prevalence of certain illnesses.

Jobs under threat

Obviously these technologies are exciting, but they also threaten to replace certain jobs. The jobs that are most under threat are accommodation and food services, transportation, retail, administration and manufacturing. Basically, jobs that are relatively straight forward are most likely to be replaced by robots and algorithms. Here’s the full graph:

The future of jobs

The safest future jobs are the ones that either too complex for computers, or which harness uniquely human qualities. Only humans can effectively provide face-to-face services like nursing, teaching and management. And in sectors such as science, health care and agriculture, humans still need to manage the intricacies and nuances.

The thing is though, for all the jobs that disappear, new ones will have to be created.

Technology based startups will be a huge source of new jobs. Not only that, but tech startups are changing the way we work. The focus will be on flexible working hours and specialised skills. Startup developers, programmers, coders, software developers, data analysts, app developers, designers, content producers… These are some job titles that are emerging and growing through this transition.

Many of these future jobs can be performed on a freelance or contractual basis, with little more than a laptop. While this flexible and specialised style of work has both perks and drawbacks, it’s the way we’re headed.

Something to consider when deciding what you want to do for work…