Does a new year mean a new career?

It’s not a surprise that technology continues to dramatically change the way we live – from all we do on our mobile phones to virtual assistants like Amazon Alexa to ridesharing services like Uber and to electric cars, and driverless ones. But technology is also changing how we work and maybe whether we work, and it’s doing it very fast. According to the “Future of Jobs”, a recent World Economic Forum report, more than one-third of the core skills most of us use in our jobs will be different in 2020 from those that are valued today.

That means the days of settling into a job or career and coasting until we retire are over. While that may sound scary – and it is! – it’s also exhilarating. It means we’ll all have to continue improving our skills, learning new things and staying on top of what’s next.

So what is next? If you’re wondering, here are 4 job trends or professions that will be highly valued in the coming year and beyond:

Healthcare – Technology is making humans less needed in some areas, like driving. But with a larger than ever aging population, the need for nurses and personal care aides continues to increase. In this decade, the number of nurses has increased by 26% and personal care aides has exploded by over 70%. (Source)

Virtual workers – The expectation used to be that we all had to sit in an office together to work. But with companies looking for talent wherever they can and the cost rent space increasing, remote work is becoming much more common – especially when it comes to jobs like web developers, programmers, app developers and other technology professions that really only require talent and a connection to the internet. (Source)

Artificial intelligence – AI technology from navigation apps to smart home devices will eliminate millions of jobs but it’s also estimated jobs in AI will reach 23 million by next year, mostly in development, programming, testing, support and maintenance. (Source)

Cyber security – Hackers have become as feared in our day as pirates were in theirs. That’s made the number of cybersecurity professionals increase three times faster than other technology jobs. Still companies are finding it challenging to fill these security positions. (Source)

Are you contemplating a career move or have you lost your job and wondering what to do next? Share your thoughts and suggestions with the Shop Talk blog community forum – it can be a great way to network!

Did you know? Human Resources specialists will be in high demand

As needed skills continue to evolve, HR professionals will be needed to find new talent and retrain existing employees. (Source)