Digitalization and You: The Future of Work

By Nicolas Zimmerman

SAMA Editor-in-Chief

The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2018 report estimates the proportion of total work hours performed by humans will drop by almost 20 percent by 2025, from 71% to 58%. Machines and algorithms, the authors say, will increase their contribution to specific job tasks by an average of 57%.

This will have huge implications for you, your company and the very meaning of work. Below are just a few findings from the report, the rest of which you can (and should) download here.

If you work in strategic accounts, you should actually feel pretty secure about your continued indispensability in a more digital, computer-driven world. In Table 4 below, which highlights the skills that are likely to become more and less relevant by 2022, the “in demand” skills (e.g., analytical thinking, complex problem solving, leadership and social influence) include many of the character traits found most often in top-performing SAMs.

For a deeper look at how the forces of digitalization will reshape the SAM job, see this excellent post from University of Auckland professor Kaj Storbacka and SAMA’s former senior knowledge content developer Elisabeth Cornell.