Mind the (Skills) Gap: Investing in the Future of Work

We are living in a time of extraordinarily rapid change. The foundations for work and career paths are shifting beneath us as we stand atop them unaware or, perhaps, only slightly aware of these technological tectonic shifts. The future of work is arriving faster than the speed of light while we shuffle our feet across the shifting foundation. Last week many business and government leaders were at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting, where they discussed how to prepare the global workforce for an automated and augmented world. One of the specific topics of interest in Davos was how to reskill the current and future workforce in a cost-efficient way. It’s estimated that 30 million U.S. workers are in danger of losing their jobs to AI in the near future.

The previous week, I posted about the economic imperative of addressing the skills gap in youth education. I had read an article by the World Economic Forum that got me thinking about how businesses could help advance education. The post elicited several fascinating conversations that show the innovation and world-changing ideas developing from technology entrepreneurs. I believe that a partnership between technology and education industries must be developed and quickly. As I stated in my post, the educational models that we rely on to prepare students for the world are outmoded and will not sufficiently prepare young people for solid careers. One of the commenters mentioned a “lag” between the old model and the coming world. Unfortunately, youth are being educated for a world that will not exist as it currently does. Even in wealthy countries, the education systems are based on knowledge created from a time when the world was not augmented by Machine Learning (ML). We can no longer take this coming change for granted. If an entire generation of people are not able to gain solid employment because of the outdated education they received, then governments and businesses will deal with people filled with resentment and struggling with serious economic issues. If this sounds tragic to you, that’s because it is. But this is not an inevitable fate.

The youth skills gap can be addressed in innovative ways that will help build a stronger and more robust global economy. We can no longer ignore it as it will imperil our future workforce. Here are a few suggestions for businesses to consider:

At School: Elementary, secondary, and higher education will need to create partnerships with businesses to design pathways that allow for skills development and on-the-job training. They will need to address the following:

·        Elementary: Our youngest students should be exposed to creative and innovative approaches to learning with AI and ML. They should be given opportunities to learn how to code in fun ways that are integrated with hands-on approaches to making things. Young students love to use their imaginations. This is the perfect time for them to learn how to create the future by giving them exposure to the tools they’ll be required to know later on in their life.

·        Secondary and Higher Education: Schools and private industry can work together to create hands-on apprenticeships and training programs that allow students to spend time on-the-job. This isn’t a new concept. It’s long been done in technical and trade schools. This approach though will set the student up with the knowledge-based training they need and then allow them to flex their wings in the workforce under mentorship programs. The curriculum will need to prepare students to learn in a way that embraces creativity and technical skill accumulation, rather than memory-based knowledge.

At Work: Skills gaps will need to continuously be addressed as our workforce will become increasingly automated. New jobs will require a new way of thinking. Reskilling and upskilling will become mandatory. In the world of work, we’ll need to address the following: 

·        We must seek to hire for potential, as jobs and skillsets will continue to change rapidly.  

·        Businesses must do what we can to promote access to opportunities. We need to make certain that we are not only addressing skills gaps but also providing support for issues that minorities and women face in the workforce.

·        Businesses can create outreach programs that teach hybrid skill building, with a focus on innovation and technology. These programs can partner with schools and community organizations to help underserved communities.

·        Continuous upskilling and reskilling initiatives will allow workers to stay up-to-date and ahead of trends. Businesses will need to invest in online learning and in-house learning centers.

These are just a few ideas that can help businesses prepare the future workforce so that they can thrive in a world that will require them to learn and work differently than we are currently preparing them for. If we address these skill gaps now, our youth will be able to stand atop any foundation, solid or shifting, and achieve their dreams of becoming successful adults.