nbn to help transform the jobs of the future: report

There will be 3 million new jobs created in Australia over the next 15 years, with the bulk of these created through either the advent of new technology or population growth.

These are among the key findings of a study conducted by KPMG Demographics on behalf of nbn. The study finds that connectivity will influence all types of jobs, not just those connected to the technology sector.

Digital disruption, mechanisation, automation and other technology impacts are rendering certain jobs scarce or obsolete, the report notes. Positions such as typist, bank teller, ticket collector and even farm labourer are under threat thanks to the introduction of new technology.

But at the same time, new technologies bring new opportunities in areas including computer programming, graphic design, engineering and e-health.

In fact, the report notes that despite the doom and gloom in numerous reports about technology rendering traditional jobs obsolete, job growth has outnumbered job losses in the 21st century in Australia by a ratio of 10 to one.

Advancements in technology are creating a higher demand for knowledge workers — employees with a university education and the specialist skills required by various industries.

Australia's expected strong population growth — forecasts are for the population to increase to 28 million by 2025 from 24 million today — is meanwhile expected to ensure that there will be demand for more teachers, nurses, police officers and builders.

White collar health and education jobs are expected to be the bulk of Australia's new jobs over the short to medium term, the report states. But it acknowledges that over the long term, technology developments such as automation or AI could contribute to a reduction in demand from these segments.

Technology developments are also expected to create a culture of entrepreneurialism that was not previously possible, particularly among focused Generation Y entrepreneurs looking to develop new work models.

"Australians are on the dawn of a disruptive 'Uber-work' era. Super connectivity made available via the nbn network will deliver a greater balance between work and lifestyle pursuits as we redefine how, when and where we will work," report author Bernard Salt commented.

"We could also see the rise of new Silicon cities or beaches in regional hubs around the country as universal access to fast broadband drives a culture of entrepreneurialism and innovation outside our capital cities."

The report states that the jobs expected to be in high demand in the future can be broadly divided into five categories — caregivers, technocrats, specialists, doers and creatives.

Caregivers will include support services such as social work and personal services such as nannies or fitness instructors. Their positions will be transformed by technologies including videoconferencing and crowdsourcing apps.

Technocrats, or highly skilled knowledge workers, will include electrical engineers, medical researchers and business entrepreneurs. High-speed broadband will enable this category of workers to do their jobs and collaborate more effectively.

Specialists will be knowledge workers that maintain systems and deliver outcomes, such as accountants, urban planners and teachers. Technology will allow these workers to conduct more of their required tasks remotely and more efficiently.

Doers will be skilled workers in jobs such as plumbers, carpenters and electricians. Automation is not expected to render these roles entirely obsolete, and technology will be able to transform the way these workers communicate with clients, order materials, allocate work and process payments.

Finally, creatives such as stylists, social media engineers, photographers or yoga instructors will be able to use high-speed broadband for inspiration, large data transfers and instant connections with peer and clients.

The report does not address the widely held concern that the Coalition's revised multitechnology rollout model for the nbn will leave large parts of Australia connected to an inferior fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) technology, leaving the country poorly equipped to compete in the global market for technology-enabled jobs and requiring an expensive upgrade in the future.

Image courtesy of GotCredit under CC