Thanks to Dr. Richard Shaw from Massey University who presented to young men and parents on ‘The Future of Work’ as part of PNBHS Careers Week. Some of the key points from Dr. Shaw’s presentation included:
• We need to rethink the idea of a ‘career’ as it has traditionally been conceived. Increasingly people will work in multiple different jobs and have a range of different roles.
• While there are a range of estimations, it is likely that up to 46% of jobs in New Zealand will be impacted by automation. In some cases this will mean that jobs are completely replaced, in others there may be only minor impacts.
• Up to 65% of the occupations young men in Year 13 today enter into will be functionally different to those today.
• New Zealand’s provinces – like Palmerston North and the Manawatu – are likely to be affected by automation of jobs before the larger urban centres and are likely to have a greater range of employment industries that will be affected by automation.
• It is important to approach learning as a lifelong proposition – education continues throughout the lifespan as we need to learn and then unlearn some skills before learning new skills.
• Skills have traditionally been thought of as ‘things we do with our hands’ – more and more it will be skills of the mind, such as critical and creative thinking and relationship skills, which are important.
“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” – Alvin Toffler, Futurist
