Let’s face it: the 21^st century will be a century of volatile transitions and towards 2020 a decade of turbulence. Growing urbanization, renewable energy, individualization of production (thanks to 3D printing), human enhancement, 24/7 connectivity, etc will have a major  influence on the job market as well. Then, how to prepare yourself for the emerging careers with a 2030 horizon? Are you ready for these jobs: Drone Dispatcher, Astro Farmer, Space Sweeper, etc?

When many of our jobs might be taken over by robots, some of the future work skills 2020 you should consider are:

1)  Sense Making : the ability to determine the deeper meaning or significance of what is being expressed.

2)  Social Intelligence:  the ability to connect to others in a deep and direct way, to sense and stimulate reactions and desired interactions.

3) Novel and Adaptive Thinking: the proficiency in thinking and coming up with solutions and responses beyond what is rote or rule-based.

4) Cross-cultural Competency: the ability to operate in different cultural settings.

5) Computational Thinking:  the ability to translate vast amounts of data to abstract concepts and to understand data-based reasoning.

6) New media Literacy: the ability to critically assess and develop content that uses new media forms, and to leverage these media for persuasive communication.

7) Transdisciplinary Skills: the literacy in and ability to understand concepts across multiple disciplines.

8) Design Mindset: the ability to represent and develop tasks and work processes for desired outcomes.

9) Cognitive Load Management : the ability to discriminate and filter information for importance, and to understand how to maximize cognitive functioning using a variety of tools and techniques.

10) Finally, Virtual Collaboration: the ability to work productively, drive engagement, and demonstrate presence as a member of a virtual team.

How do you measure?

Christopher Cordey, BSL Professor