Are you (mis)fit to the future workforce?

The success of a business and future workforce will depend upon the collaboration between human’s natural intelligence and machine’s artificial intelligence (AI). In one of the recent studies, it has been estimated that by 2030 over 8.5 per cent of the global workforce will be displaced by the robots. Moreover, another study done by a world’s leading university suggests that by 2034 around half of the jobs will be automated. It is important to understand the current state of the world and the potential shift that is going to happen in the future. It will not only help us to understand where we belong but also open new opportunities for us to explore the possibilities to realize the potential and existence of the future workforce.  

The fusion of man and machine in the workforce within and across the business ecosystem results in a better outcome rather than both working independently. Both the participants of the workforce have the capability to learn from each other. The developments in the artificial intelligence sphere have opened a new channel for the machine to learn by itself without human intervention and in some cases, the results are evident that machines have outperformed the human’s natural intelligence.  As we are stepping into the future, we need to understand that we are well prepared and should not be displaced by the machines and processes which are enabled and powered by AI.    

Three ways by which the fusion of man and machine in the future workforce will be successful:    

Complementing machines

The advent of smart and intelligent technologies has made humans rethink about their time and work. It is now possible for businesses to understand the customers more precisely and then accordingly provide personalized services. Humans can work with machines by advancing their skill set and involvement in more “human activities”.  They can help the society and the community to responsibly shape the way that people understand this fusion. Moreover, humans must know when to step in where machines have limitations in understanding the context, scope and ethical purview of the business context.    

Using machines  

Humans should also learn to unfold layers of machine’s abstraction and probe it to understand the capabilities and limitations of the AI and thereby find a way to make an informed decision. The intelligent bots or software agents must be utilized optimally to take the unproductive work of the humans. Humans need to understand the portfolios of such bots and agents and also the way that they can be utilized to increase the effectiveness and productivity at the workplace.  

Be with machines

One should not be scared about the machines or feel them as a threat, rather man and machine need to learn from each other and improve upon the overall effectiveness of the workforce.  
To consider yourself as (mis)fit to the future workforce, you need to answer the question “Are you able to complement, use and be with machines to improve upon the effectiveness and productivity of the workforce and business?”

About Author:

Dr Nitin Upadhyay is a researcher, inventor, innovator, consultant, leader, coach, academician and a prolific writer. Over the years, he has engaged with select top Fortune 500 companies. He is a leading authority and speaker on innovation, design, blockchain, cloud computing, big data & analytics, future technology and user experience. He is the Chair and Head of the Centre for Innovation at GIM - Goa Institute of Management. He has wide industry, academic, consultancy and research experience. He is also a member of the Board of Governors and Executive member and Chair of Cloud SLAs (service-level agreements) for the Cloud Computing Innovation Council of India. As Startup coach, he provides innovative insights, roadmap and action plans for successfully materializing innovative process and new products. 

Note: The views expressed in this article are solely author’s own and do not reflect/represent those of Shiksha