Building Skills of the Future Workforce

Switchboard operator. Video store clerk. Typesetter.

No idea what some of these are? No worries, these are simply jobs that existed in the 1900's that are now extinct. Does anyone miss these jobs? Not really, because now we have professions and solutions that accomplish these tasks much more efficiently.

The loss and creation of new jobs is a cycle that has been happening throughout history. The situation is the same today - jobs that are repetitive, hazardous or strenuous are getting automated. Meanwhile, people will be encouraged to create, make decisions and interact. But for us to have this bright future we need to bridge the digital skills gap, which is currently not in our favour.

In fact this gap is getting so wide that, according to World Economic Forum, we are risking losing $11.5 trillion in GDP growth over the next 10 years, if this gap keeps growing. That's about the same as the nominal GDP of Japan, Germany and UK put together.

In China this threat is one of the most apparent. Due to large amounts of employees in physical, repetitive labour, China could lose as much as 1.7% of GDP growth per year over 10 years, if nothing changes. But companies are already reacting.

According to a World Economic Forum survey, the most popular strategy of preparing the workforce for the future amongst companies in China is reskilling current employees - with a whopping 48%. On average, companies in China see the need to upskill over 70% of their current workforce!

But what skills will be most helpful? ?? Below are some emerging trends and the skills that grow in importance with them:

1.

?? Trend: No more customers, only users ??

?? Skill to build: User Experience (UX) Design

This mindset shift has been has been a big influence on the market. This shift is why brands like Starbucks, Mercedes-Benz, Apple are growing their recurring revenue - through subscriptions, services, add-ons, platforms, apps etc. This trend is moving into Retail, FMCG, Banking and other sectors rapidly, creating the need to provide a great user experience beyond just the POS interaction.

2.

?? Trend: Change is the only constant ?

?? Skill to build: DevOps and Agile

In the times of fast change, frequency of launching new products and services is essential. Some companies are taking it to the next level - Sony update their code every 7 minutes, Amazon - every 11.7 seconds. ?? Successful companies continuously work on improving what they sell.

3.

?? Trend: We will never be offline again ??

?? Skill to build: Data Driven Decisions

It is predicted that in 2020 an average internet user will generate 5200 GBs of data online. Most of it will be unconsciously generated. Already every user on a platform, every department in a company, every interaction online is generating data that can be used to offer a better service. The most valued brands in the world get their value by knowing how to use data to drive business decisions. Brands from other sectors are joining by equipping their workforce with data literacy.

4.

?? Trend: Chances are, your next disruption will be tech related ??

?? Skill to build: Product Management and Tech Workflow

Satya Nadella said "Every company is now a software company." That might not necessarily be the case, but what is true is that every business is nowadays touched by software and likely will get more digitalised over the next 5 years. Effective integration of that software - whether with the people, process or product - is key for any business aiming to take part in the new world.

5.

?? Trend: Best way to predict the future is to build it ??

?? Skill to build: Coding

World Bank predicts that over 80% of simple cognitive and physical work will be automated or augmented by computing. In that case, people (and companies) will instead have more time to experiment, design and built things that make their life better and work easier. And in many cases, the barriers to efficient work and life can be overcome by coding your own solution.

6.

?? Trend: Innovation rates are exponential ??

?? Skill to build: Lifelong learning

It is clear that the era of learning the first 20+ years of your life and working for the rest is over. To have high productivity as well as retention, a company needs to continuously upskill their workforce. Because in order to achieve new heights, employees must gain new knowledge, use new tools and discover new ideas.

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About Le Wagon

Le Wagon is a global coding academy running the top-rated coding bootcamp (SwitchUp, CourseReport 2016-17-18). Through immersive coding bootcamps and trainings, Le Wagon teaches everyone the skills and entrepreneurial mindset needed to thrive - now and in the future.

We work with great companies in China and globally, see our corporate training portfolio here: https://executive.lewagon.com.

We empower individuals, universities and companies in China, with offices in Shanghai, Chengdu, and Shenzhen. Our network of over 6000 smart individuals is active with learning events, workshops, job fairs, and coaching sessions. Web or WeChat developers, Product Managers, Digital Strategists, Data Analysts are part of our inclusive alumni community.