TOMORROW’S WORKFORCE – WHERE ARE THEY COMING FROM?

Sadly, many data professionals face an uncertain future. Working in an environment that is in a constant state of change, most data professionals want to keep their skills relevant, their jobs interesting, and their future secure.

Note in particular the bits about people wanting a secure, interesting and relevant future.

At the same time, employers are looking for a permanent solution to their persistent data woes. One might ask whether it’s possible to create a permanent fix for something that is constantly in use – maybe the same options might exist for taking care of other "busy" things, like my house or my car.? I’m not sure it is, in fact, feasible - If data was a passive and inactive resource, it would be easy (well, easier) to manage.? But it’s not!?

Data is a huge, many-faceted, complicated, dynamic, versatile, expensive entity that is subject to a lot of – “creative adaptation”.? Keeping the data trustworthy and ready for the next set of users is not for the faint of heart, or those who lack patience (so what, you might ask, am I doing in this business? Fair point ... ).??

How do we match data professionals, who see the value of and need for trusted, accessible data, with employers who want reliable, persistent data-driven results?? Clearly, magic is not the answer.? The answer is rooted in strategic, future thinking data and people centric planning, rational thinking, convergence in practice and expectations, and skilled resources.?

Study after study (including Forbes in this study https://www.forbes.com/sites/brentdykes/2021/06/01/10-reasons-why-your-organization-still-isnt-data-driven/) tells us that a significant barrier to success lies in getting people with the right skills on board.

Organizations such as the World Economic Forum have looked at the future of jobs from the perspective of the global economy and the energy transition.? The WEF ?publishes a series of reports, ?“The Future of Jobs”, in which the WEF reports that “The fastest-growing roles relative to their size today are driven by technology, digitalization and sustainability.”? Reskilling and upskilling, mentioned over 800 times in this article, are critical to the future of all jobs, but particularly those that are related to digitalization (think about data’s key role here). Over the next 5 years, they claim, a stunning 44% of worker’s core skills are expected to change.

44% is a lot! How do we achieve this remarkable expectation? The same report suggests that a return on investment for skills training may not be seen for many months.? The logical conclusion?? Reskilled or upskilled staff are an asset that must still be on hand to the company months and years later in order to see ROI. That suggests a long-term relationship between employers and employees is a necessary component of success.

But in an economy where the price of energy is the factor driving layoffs, the long-term value of skilled data professionals is under recognized. When job security depends on the price of a commodity, and not on your performance or the value you add to an organization, a powerful motivation to engage in reskilling, upskilling or even recognition is lacking.?

For workers, the consequences are dire. Frankly, the same is true for employers, though this may not be immediately clear to the bean counters who are organizing layoffs.

?In 2023, Gallup and workhuman partnered to look at this problem in a study called “From Praise to Profits: The business case for recognition at work”.? The study showed that employee recognition (in companies with about 10,000 employees) drives an average 9% increase in productivity, valued at nearly $100 Million (a strong technology emphasis in the company increased that average to over $155 Million). Kudos to companies who are truly invested in the value of people, even if it costs them short term profits.? They are a rare breed. A career that’s grounded in the certainty you will be laid off in the next handful of years fails to reinforce one’s perception of recognition, despite a free lunch or trinket from time to time.?

Cost vs time?

This challenge is reflected in the investment companies provide for employee training.? If you work for a largeish company, you might have an annual professional development allotment of between $1,000 and $5,000 a year. Small companies may not be able to afford that much.

But training costs run into thousands and may require the student to be onsite (lost productivity time).? Sometimes attending conferences is included in your professional development allowance; for these, registration costs can also be pricey.

It takes very little to exhaust your training allowance, but this is far from being the most significant barrier. A dichotomy exists between the availability of funding and the willingness of employers to suffer a temporary gap in productivity.? Even if you have theoretical access to training funds, corporate culture or job demands for immediate productivity may restrict your willingness to register for something – even if the value for your future contributions to work are clear.?

We want to hear from you

What is the barrier to your professional development, whether it be new skilling, reskilling or upskilling?? Is it cost?? Time away from work?? Management support?? The “cool” factor in class material?

PPDM? is a professional society – and we take our role for Data Professionals very seriously. We are developing professional development learning opportunities that will run at a fraction the cost of other data centric training, and we hope everyone will leverage these.?

For more information here are some articles worth checking out:

https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_NES_Resetting_FOW_Agenda_2020.pdf

https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Towards_a_Reskilling_Revolution.pdf

https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Accelerating_an_Equitable_Transition_A_data_driven_approach_2024.pdf