Top Ten Trending Skills for Future of Work in Any Industry

Over the last two decades, mankind has seen it all, from email to chat-bots, big data to fast data, analytics to artificial intelligence, machine learning to Internet of Things, not to forget about advanced robotics, autonomous vehicles, augmented intelligence, virtual reality and much more. The transformation has been steady and the impact quite profound, so much that it has changed the way we live life and manage business or work. Job market analysis reports suggest that some jobs will disappear, others will grow and jobs that don’t even exist today will gain traction to become commonplace. Therefore, it is certain that the future workforce will need to align its skillset to keep pace. Since nature follows “survival of the fittest theory”, it’s best to proactively start preparation and get aligned with the new work expectations, to secure the future as well as experience fantastic career growth.

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According to the renowned World Economic Forum, five years from now, more than 35% of the skills that are considered vital for the current workforce, will have changed. Looking at the fast pace of industrial innovation, technical advancement and technological disruption, very soon human resources will have to share workstations with artificially intelligent systems and robots. In order to stay ahead in the ever-growing industry, a learning mindset is required so that building new skills becomes easier and simpler.

Creative Mind – Humans are the only species blessed with a creative mind. No matter how advanced the technology gets, behind every disruption is a human mind working at its peak. The future of work will demand human resources to be creative and think differently in order to realize the full benefits of new technology, new products and new ways of living. Machines and codes may get more power as the days go by, but at present humans are way superior in terms of creativity and cognitive thinking. Creativity is a million-dollar skill which will remain in high demand for ages to come.

Emotional Intelligence - Emotion is the dynamic energy which adds extra zing to every task you do. Your internal awareness which helps you to feel, control and express yourself as well as be cognizant of others feelings is what defines your emotional intelligence. If you have empathy and integrity, you reciprocate and connect well with others, you are considered to be exhibiting high emotional intelligence. Though machines are great enablers in certain fields, a machine cannot ideally fill the gap when it’s the question of a human’s ability to connect with another human being. So emotional intelligence will continue to remain in high demand.

Critical Analysis – To come up with innovative ideas and provide quick solutions to complex problems using logical reasoning, requires critical thinking which is the brainchild of an analytical mind. In order to think critically, the initial step is to perform a smart analysis of the flow of information from various resources. Those who use strong analytical thought process, usually rely on logical reasoning rather than allowing emotions to take over control. Collating relevant facts and measuring the situation from diverse angles, support in being open-minded about the best possibilities of a solution. To write machine learning algorithms, coders need strong critical analysis. Experts believe that resources with strong analytical skills will be much sought after as the AI and ML ecosystem evolve and grow further, so as to maintain a healthy balance between human and machine oriented distribution of labour.   

Immersive Learning for Achieving Excellence – The technology disruption over the past decade has created the candour of actively immersive learning. The future of the industrial ecosystem will harbour more of self-learning through deep dive experiences and those with a growth mindset will automatically overpower others. If you believe that teaching or training others, is the best form of learning, then you definitely have an edge and you are sure to walk the extra mile to build skills through self-initiatives, take up new challenges, learn from experiences and mistakes, actively seek know-how, which will all result in achieving excellence for you and your team. Also, as in the past and present, even in the future of work, learning and training will be considered a continuous ongoing process for overall growth.

Critical Decision Making – The exponential growth of artificial intelligence and machine learning is accredited to the capability of these powerful technologies to process massive amounts of data of every kind and provide highly useful insights that would be next to impossible for any human brain to work upon, to produce meaningful output, matching with the timeframe. However, a human resource is indispensable, when it comes to broader implications, the decision might have on critical areas of business, personnel and the impact on other more human sensibilities such as morale. Even in “Arthashastra”, Chanakya talks about “Anvikshiki”, the power of logical thinking in critical decision making and its importance. With machines getting more powerful and technology taking away more redundant, operational and mundane tasks, human decision making will get more complex in future workstations, creating a niche for those with decision making the skill set to grow.

Strong Interpersonal Skills – The ability to communicate well, requires the ability to listen with complete awareness and helps tremendously in building up interpersonal skills, which contribute largely in personal as well as professional growth. Since ages kings and princes have been groomed in communicating well. Even today you will find most of the educational courses including communication management as part of the curriculum. But seldom you will find any training sessions being conducted to hone the listening ability. The fourth industrial revolution will continue to emphasize more on mindful listening and effective communication powered by appropriate body language, the right tone and modulation of voice and above all saying the right things in order to pass correct messages across to other human beings as well as machines.

Lead without a Title – As we embark upon the beautiful journey into technology powered ecosystem, wherein we are expected to have equal comradery with machines as with humans, the demand from human resources will be to set an example and lead with or without a title. Hierarchies and organizational charts may continue to prevail, but those with a vision to take up proactive challenges, having a helping nature to gel in well with others, learn through self-motivation and training, handle issues and build solutions, will outgrow by inspiring and leading the path to success.

Cultural Intelligence in the Face of Diversity – Globally our personal and professional places are getting more diverse and open with people belonging to different geo-regions, culture, language or beliefs coming to stay in the close community or work together. Keeping the core differences aside, those with the ability to understand and adapt to others who might have different ways of perceiving the world will not only improve how people interact within the organization or community but is also likely to make the organization’s products and services more inclusive as well as successful.

Technical Skills – The technological advancement is powered by big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, robotics, block-chains, augmented and virtual reality, to name a few. It implies that every individual will need to achieve a certain level of comfort using technology. Organizations will continue to take initiatives to embrace new technologies. So those with stronger technical prowess, ability to build designs and develop solutions, to train big teams and bring in the right talent, will experience sharper growth in career, business as well as any industry they are connected to.

Adaptive Mindset – There is nothing permanent except change and embracing changes in the way of living and working with an adaptive mindset is where the future lies. Due to the fast pace of change in the future workplace, resources will have to be agile and able to celebrate change. More important is the clarity to look at the inevitable changes, not as hurdles, rather as awesome opportunities to innovate and grow.

You may be at the initial stages of your career or you may be an established technology or business leader. Irrespective of your core skills and line of business, you should identify a few of the trending skills, create a plan and get started. You can even form a small group with other like-minded resources to make your learning more enjoyable, retainable and profound.

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