Defining the skills citizens will need in the future world of work
As the world of work evolves, so too must our skillsets. This exploration delves into the competencies that will be paramount in the future job market, providing a roadmap for those seeking to stay ahead in an ever-changing professional landscape.
Digital and AI technologies are transforming the world of work
The need for manual and physical skills will decline, but demand for technological, social and emotional, and higher cognitive skills will grow
- Governments are keen to help their citizens develop in these areas, but it is hard to devise curricula and the best learning strategies without being more precise about the skills needed
- It is difficult to teach what is not well defined
Reform adult-training systems
Some specific actions to encourage relevant adult learning include: Establish an AI aggregator of training programs to attract adult learners and encourage lifelong learning
- Introduce a skill-based certification system
- Fund schemes that encourage a higher focus on DELTAs
- Give lifelong learning grants to citizens
Defining foundational skills
In a labor market that is more automated, digital, and dynamic, all citizens will benefit from having a set of foundational skills that help them fulfill the following three criteria
- Add value beyond what can be done by automated systems and intelligent machines
- Operate in a digital environment
- continually adapt to new ways of working and new occupations
How DELTAs could help shape education and adult training
Our findings help define the particular skills citizens are likely to require in the future world of work and suggest how proficiency in them can influence work-related outcomes.
DELTA proficiency and outcomes
Two pieces of research were conducted
Reform education systems
Governments could consider reviewing and updating curricula to focus more strongly on the DELTAs
- A strong curricula focus on these soft skills may be appropriate given the weak correlation between proficiency in self-leadership and higher levels of education
- Government could also consider leading further research
- Many governments and academics have started to define the taxonomies of the skills citizens will require, but few have done so at the level described here
- Research would be required to define progression and proficiency levels achievable at different ages and to design and test developmental strategies and assessment models
Ensure affordability of lifelong education
Most children around the world have access to primary and secondary schooling, but not all of it is of high quality
- Early education for the very young is unaffordable in most countries
- Very few countries have worked out a system to provide affordable access to quality adult training
Proficiency
To ascertain proficiency levels, we defined a desirable level of proficiency in each of the 56 DELTAs, then devised a psychometric questionnaire to assess respondents’ proficiency against this bar
- Overall, survey participants with a university degree had higher average proficiency scores across 56 distinct elements of talent, suggesting that those with higher levels of education are better prepared for changes in the workplace.
- We also examined whether proficiency was linked to education.
Outcomes
Survey respondents with higher DELTA proficiencies were, on average, more likely to be those that were employed, with higher incomes, and had higher job satisfaction
- High incomes were most strongly associated with proficiency in the four skill groups where overall proficiency levels were lowest among respondents
- Digital proficiency was particularly associated with higher income
- Job satisfaction is also associated with certain DELTAs, especially those in the self-leadership category
- proficiency in self-confidence was the most predictive DELTA for two out of the three outcomes