Its meteoric rate of advance and apparent ability to improve without human intervention (we\u2019ll get to this later) is catapulting the new professional into an age where artificial intelligence is synonymous with superior intelligence.<\/p>\n
The World Economic Forum suggests that almost half of subject knowledge acquired during the first year of a four-year technical degree will be outdated by the time graduation day comes around, and that by 2020, more than a third of the essential skill sets required by the vast majority of jobs will consist of skills that are not currently thought of as crucial to the occupation.1<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n That sort of sentiment is supported by leaders such as Esteban Bullrich, the Argentine Minister of Education, who states: \u201cA child today can expect to change jobs at least seven times over the course of their lives – and five of those jobs don\u2019t exist yet.\u201d2<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n Let\u2019s take a deeper look at some examples of the power of artificial intelligence, the effect that artificial intelligence will have on jobs, and solutions for the working professionals of the future.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re at the most dangerous moment in the development of humanity,\u201d cries world-renowned theoretical physicist, Stephen Hawking.3<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n The automation of tasks has already had an impact on jobs in traditional manufacturing – an impact that Hawking believes is set to extend into the middle classes. The worry is that the broader result of this automation through artificial intelligence could mean even greater economic inequality worldwide, as it allows small groups of individuals to do the same work while employing fewer people for higher profit.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is inevitable, it is progress, but it is also socially destructive.\u201d says Hawking.<\/p>\n Seems like a big deal, right?<\/p>\n Despite the looming doom forecast by Hawking and others, there\u2019s also a demonstration of the power of artificial intelligence that impresses before it prompts worry at the potential negative effects of this power applied elsewhere.<\/p>\n Google Translate, after transitioning from phrase-based translation to a new engine called Google Neural Machine Translation (GNMT), whereby Translate basically became \u201csmart\u201d, invented its own language in order to output more accurate translations.<\/p>\n Let that sink in.<\/strong><\/p>\n A machine created its own set of rules in order to reach a goal, without human interference – it completed an action it was not coded to perform.<\/p>\n Job roles affected by artificial intelligence sit in one of two camps: Replaced or Augmented.<\/p>\n The roles sitting in “Replaced” require a higher degree of repeated, similar tasks \u2014 although not necessarily exclusively so \u2014 in fields ranging from finance, insurance and construction, to inventory managers, farmers, and taxi drivers. Although aspects of theses roles will be replaced at different times in the future, their time is, on average, more limited than jobs in “Augmented”.<\/p>\n According to a McKinsey report4<\/a><\/sup>, humans will still outclass tech in subclasses of:<\/p>\n Job roles that will either be augmented or otherwise largely unaffected by advances in artificial intelligence rely largely on skills including or related to the points above. Think along the lines of talent management, entertainment and design – as well as any position requiring traditional leadership.<\/p>\n A report by ManpowerGroup5<\/a><\/sup> states that \u201ccreativity, emotional intelligence and cognitive flexibility are skills that will tap human potential and allow people to augment robots, rather than be replaced by them.\u201d<\/p>\n Beyond cutting wires, pulling plugs and retreating to a cabin in the woods for a career in only-just-surviving, the answer is relatively simple: adapt, as millions have before.<\/strong><\/p>\n One of the best ways to adapt to the disruption AI will bring, is by committing to learning.<\/p>\n A report on artificial intelligence by Citi predicts that working professionals will, to some extent, be required to retrain in their lifetime as machines replace the traditional workforce. What this highlights \u2014 as mentioned in Citi\u2019s report \u2014 is the need to invest in ongoing education in order to \u201cmitigate the impact of increased automation and AI.\u201d6<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n Lifelong learning is the weapon with which to fight future irrelevance.<\/p>\n Chairman & CEO of ManpowerGroup, Jonas Prising, called the act of helping people adapt to the pace of change in the working world \u201cthe defining challenge of our time.\u201d5<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n Not impossible, but a challenge nonetheless.<\/p>\n He goes on to say, “Now is the time for leaders to be responsive and responsible: we cannot slow the rate of technological advance or globalisation, but we can invest in employees\u2019 skills to increase the resilience of our people and organisations. Individuals also need to nurture their learnability: their desire and ability to learn new skills to stay relevant and remain employable.”<\/p>\n Devin Wenig, President and CEO of eBay adds to the conversation: \u201cIn the very near future we won\u2019t have the same jobs that we have today, but new jobs will be created. We must empower people with the right education and opportunities. I believe our greatest days are ahead of us, but this rests on embracing our most promising technologies \u2014 and shaping them \u2014 to lift people up and create opportunity at all levels.”7<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n Maybe we\u2019re just making a lot of noise about the relatively new, shiny object that is artificial intelligence because we\u2019re not exactly sure how to use it yet.<\/p>\n While we shout about the power of AI, its impact on jobs and what that means for the new working professional, we should also remember that its impact isn\u2019t restricted to negative outcomes. Think about those routine tasks you\u2019d rather let someone else do so you\u2019re free to focus on more fulfilling ones.<\/p>\n Technology can be that \u201csomeone else\u201d.<\/p>\n Erik Brynjolfsson, Director of the MIT Initiative for the Digital Economy \u2014 whose purpose is to examine the question \u201cHow do we thrive in a period of profound digital transformation?\u201d \u2014 had this to say about the conversation at 2017\u2019s edition of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos:<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest misconception I\u2019ve heard…is this idea that technology is going to come for all of our jobs and there\u2019s nothing we can do about it. The reality is that it\u2019s a more powerful tool than we have ever had before, that means we have more power to shape it going forward.\u201d<\/strong>8<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n Doesn\u2019t that make the hype around artificial intelligence sound like another case of \u201cKeep Calm and…\u201d?<\/p>\n Adapt.<\/p>\n Study an online short course today<\/p>\n![\"artificial](\"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/articlebanners-900x250-quote-1.jpg\")
<\/p>\nHow artificial intelligence will affect jobs<\/strong><\/h5>\n
Jobs that will be most affected by artificial intelligence<\/strong><\/h5>\n
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<\/p>\nHow can you benefit from artificial intelligence?<\/strong><\/h5>\n
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\nPrepare yourself for the workplace of the future by investing in new skills today<\/h5>\n