The future of work is bringing so many changes. If you want a career in 2025, Cheryl Cran is here to tell you what to focus on.
Five years from now, about 5m jobs will be taken over by automation. However, in the future of work, there will be new jobs that will take the place of those being done by robots.
To be able to compete in the future job market, workers will need to upskill and reskill.
Take a look at the jobs in the future of work, and the skills needed to get those jobs.
- Food services industry jobs such as agriculture, restaurant and in-home food delivery or cooking services
- Housing industry, tiny home expert, 3D printing of homes, and jobs that provide solutions for the homeless
- Technology industry, data scientist, software developer, systems analyst, data analyst – these jobs require technological skills and the ability to match data to business outcomes
- Entertainment industry, video storyteller, content creator for multiple media platforms, game developer and interactive media jobs
- Sales industry jobs such as sales analyst, sales professional, customer sales support. Successful skills include emotional intelligence, data solutions, understanding multiple media applications and the ability to simplify complex solutions for customers
- Medical industry jobs such as researchers, medical innovators and wellness experts in the workplace will require skills such as being able to communicate complex ideas, the ability to translate data into innovative solutions, and finding creative and simple ways to increase wellbeing for workers
- Team leaders in a variety of industries and roles will include managing robots, automation and AI, along with diverse teams from around the world. Skills will include the ability to match human solutions with technology solutions, and to seamlessly move between excelling with technology and inspiring people in the workplace
You can take any industry that exists and see that disruptions that include technology, worker attitude changes and demographics are rapidly shifting the future landscape of work.
For example, in the accounting and legal industry, worker attitudes are shifting away from billable hours and more towards project pricing. Younger accountants and lawyers are questioning the value of working to fill a quota of ‘hours’ rather than providing results for clients, and therefore completely restructuring the way firms bill and interact with customers.
The opportunity for workers in these industries is to transform the way the work has been done by leveraging automation while increasing client satisfaction with results.
With the increase of data analytics, it is very easy for a company to see what’s working and what’s not working within their business or industry. The ability to translate data into profound solutions is a big future-of-work job opportunity for those looking to guarantee future job security.
If you want to ensure a career in 2025, you need only look at the trends of human behaviour and focus on what people will always want: food, housing, entertainment and anything to do with health and wellbeing. Next, focus on continually upskilling and reskilling to meet the fast changes impacting the future of work.
For those who want to upskill and reskill right now, the skills that need to be developed include the ability to:
- link data with critical thinking that leads to business innovation
- think with real-time creativity in everyday work scenarios
- communicate with increasingly diverse teams of varying cultures, personalities and locations
- adapt quickly to rapid change
- turn disruptions into opportunities
- engage clients and co-workers quickly and effectively
- bridge diverse opinions into a collective solution
- inspire and lead change towards consistent innovation
- link the right technology solution to the business challenge
- stay positive and solution-oriented in rapid changing workplace culture
The future of careers is very exciting. You can create your own future by seeking the industry opportunities and focusing on being a lifelong learner in order to stay relevant and valuable to all future employers.
By Cheryl Cran
Cheryl Cran is a future-of-work expert and author of The Art of Change Leadership: Driving Transformation in a Fast-Paced World.
