The future of work

What are the forces of change?

The way we will work and live in the next decade is already being shaped.

The experts of the Future Trends Forum group the forces of change into four major categories, interrelated with each other: More connected and more trained professionals, Companies with purpose and in search of the best talent, Technology that enables new ways of working and generates new professions and Society with more social and environmental awareness.

These four forces, accelerated by the pandemic, lead us to a future of work with professionals in continuous training in social and digital skills and companies increasingly aware of the important role they play for the well-being of society and the planet.

What will the professionals of the future be like?

Professionals are going to need to make an effort to be up to date, both in digital and technical skills as well as in social skills, with the ability to learn new things becoming the most relevant. Lifelong learning throughout the professional career will be the norm and interdisciplinarity will be a quality highly valued by companies. Having multiple skills and knowing how to function in uncertain environments will be more important than being a specialist, when it comes to being considered an attractive talent for companies.
This trend has been accelerated by David Epstein’s reflections and conclusions in his book Range, one of the best-selling nonfiction books in the United States in 2019.

Companies with purpose and that attract the best talent

For the expert Jason Wingard, Chancellor of Temple University and renowned advisor to CEOs and steering committees, the number one priority of companies becomes the retention and attraction of the best talent. To do this, it is necessary to think and put into practice new forms of organization and new forms of leadership, applying innovation and the intelligent use of new technologies, redefining and acting on the business purpose, around which culture and values bring together the best.

Facilitators of positive changes.

Public administrations can accelerate positive changes by designing and implementing social, educational, and labor policies in innovative ways. A good example is the NextGenerationEU tool, which aims to make Europe greener, more digital, more resilient and better adapted to current and future challenges. According to the expert Thierry Malleret, countries that are committed to ending economic and social inequalities, making an effort to develop an increasingly sustainable economy, will be the ones that prosper the most and best.

If we are all able to implement the recommendations of the experts of the Future Trends Forum, collecting, combining and planning the most cutting-edge innovations collected here, a very positive horizon of inclusive and planet-friendly economic growth opens up, with increasingly significant jobs and leadership focused on human beings.