Work Is Changing. Are You Ready?

For a new generation of career nomads, job roles are transient, and flexibility is key. Here’s how to upskill yourself to stay ahead in an ever-evolving workplace.

- Tracy Ramsden

It’s 2017 and the robots are not just coming, they’re already here, replacing everyone from your pharmacist to your lawyer to the person who scans your groceries, drives your car and books your holiday. In short, they’re replacing you.

This kind of quasi-sci-fi scaremongering has led to a third of young people admitting they are fearful of the future, with 78 per cent of 18-24-year-olds seeking support to build their resilience at work.* But experts are quick to reassure. ‘The robots will only take over if we switch off our human side,’ says Laura Thomson, founder of Phenomenal Training (tag line: maximising human potential in the machine age). ‘As our jobs become increasingly automated, we need to shift our attitude to stay motivated and not become an endangered species in our chosen profession.’

So what is the key to survival? Upskilling. ‘Chances are your final job title before retirement hasn’t been invented yet, and your first job may already be extinct,’ adds Thomson. ‘So instead of aiming for a specific future job title or role, focus on developing a broad set of skills that will future-proof you.’

Now the average length of stay in a job is four-and-a-half years, what was once considered ‘job hopping’ is now the norm. For a generation of career nomads, the ability to keep learning, moving and reassessing is key. ‘As we head towards 2020, the interview question is less likely to be “why did you leave that role?” and more likely to be “why did you stay after that project was completed?” as potential employers size up our adaptability,’ says Thomson.