12 Certainties™ Transforming the Career Landscape

Futurist Daniel Burrus

The saying goes; success is when preparation meets opportunity. And as technology continues to impact our lives, workers in today’s ever-changing labor market need to be prepared with skills to adapt and succeed in the workplace.

Job opportunities in technology are growing up to three times faster than other career fields in the U.S.[1] Long gone are the days of a linear education and career trajectory as technology continues to reshape the world’s education and workplace landscapes. Nowadays, the career paths of most individuals resemble a scaffold rather than a conservative straight line.

Changes in the education and workplace landscape not only impact job seekers, but educators and employers as well. It’s estimated that by 2025, we could have 20 million jobs without enough qualified people to fill them.[2]

Daniel Burrus, a globally renowned futurist and author of six books including the New York Times best seller “Flash Foresight,” recently released his inaugural Certainties™ list, based on a scientific method aimed at providing various employment sectors with a clearer outlook of their respective futures.

Burrus’ list of Certainties, which highlights 12 technologies that will continue to transform present and future careers, uses his proprietary scientific method of separating Hard Trends – trends that will happen – from Soft Trends – trends that might happen.

Over the past five years, Burrus has collected Certainties from thousands of senior executives from every industry around the world, providing a clear picture of the direction different sectors are heading.

“The goal is to give people a road map regarding how technology will transform their careers and how to ensure they’re not caught in disappearing careers, but rather preparing and positioning themselves for the predictable changes in their current fields as well as emerging careers with real, long-term demand,” says Burrus.

According to Burrus’ Certainties list, some of the technologies that will transform our world and careers include:

3-D Web and 3-D Printing

Employment for graphic artists, designers and programmers will grow as the web surfing experience transforms from a one-dimensional “flat” page to a dynamic 3-D experience for the user.

Additionally, the manufacturing industry will be revolutionized by 3-D printing, which will allow any size company to manufacture goods quickly, locally and at lower cost.

Gamification of Education

Both employees and students will have training and teaching methods delivered to them in a highly-personalized and accelerated way, through the use of simulations and skill-based learning systems transmitted through smart phones and tablets.

Cloud Services and Virtualization

As more organizations maintain and store information using cloud services, the demand for professionals skilled in information technology is expected to rise. Employees who can safeguard important company and client data will be vital to business success.

In order to meet the anticipated demands of the 21^st century, individuals must reassess their skills to make certain they are equipped with the necessary knowledge to remain relevant in their field.

Burrus recently teamed with DeVry University to launch his Certainties list as the institution exemplifies the kind of forward-looking curriculum development necessary to ensure degree programs adequately prepare students for the future.

“DeVry University is committed to effectively aligning our students’ academic experience with the plausible future demands of the industries in which they seek successful careers,” says David J. Pauldine, president of DeVry University. “As a university, we are continuously interfacing with Fortune 100 companies to ensure our educational programs prepare our graduates for current and emerging job opportunities.”

Burrus urges employers, employees and educators alike to give serious consideration to these career-transforming Certainties so that the American worker is better positioned for careers of the 21^st century.

**12 Certainties That Will Transform Every Career and Create New Ones**
By Daniel Burrus

Mobile Hardware, Software and Services will continue to rapidly evolve creating many new careers, as all phones become smartphones and our primary computer and tablets continue to evolve as our laptop replacement. This new level of mobility will allow any size business to transform how they market, sell, communicate, collaborate, educate, train, and innovate.
Remote Visual Communications will become a primary relationship-building tool for businesses of all sizes as employees use smartphones, tablets, and laptops, in combination with current video conferencing systems, to communicate at new levels with customers, partners, and employees.
Social Business Enterprise Management will grow rapidly as organizations shift from an Information Age “informing” model to a Communication Age “communicating and engaging” model. New careers will emerge as Social Software for business rapidly grows with applications to enhance relationships, collaboration, networking, social validation, and more. Social Search will increasingly shape careers as marketers, researchers and those on Wall Street create applications and services to tap into millions of daily tweets and Facebook conversations, providing real-time analysis of many key consumer metrics.
Cyber Security and Forensics careers will grow rapidly as we become increasingly connected and dependent on computer systems and machines using intelligent sensors connected to just about everything. Careers in data and information forensics will grow rapidly as the need to solve cyber crimes increases.
Additive Manufacturing (3D Printing) will create many new careers in manufacturing as this revolutionary technology allows any size company to manufacture quickly, locally and with far fewer costs. Additive manufacturing builds things by depositing material, typically plastic or metal, layer by layer until the final product is finished. Examples of final products today include jewelry, iPhone cases, shoes, car dashboards, parts for jet engines, prosthetic limbs and much more.
Gamification of Education will create many new careers as corporations and educational institutions at all levels accelerate learning by using advanced simulations and skill-based learning systems that are self-diagnostic, interactive, game-like, and competitive, all focused on giving the user an immersive experience thanks to a photo-realistic 3D interface.
Cloud Services and Virtualization will be increasingly embraced by businesses of all sizes, as this represents a major shift in how organizations obtain and maintain software, hardware, and computing capacity. IT is rapidly becoming an on-demand service that is rapidly transforming all business processes resulting in a rapid evolution of current careers as well as creating new careers in every functional area.
Big Data and Real-Time Analytics describe the technologies and techniques used to capture and utilize the exponentially increasing streams of data with the goal of bringing enterprise-wide visibility and insights to make rapid critical decisions. This new level of data integration and analytics will require many new skills and cross-functional training in order to take advantage of new opportunities as well as breakdown the many data and organizational silos that still exist.
Intelligent ePersonal Assistants using natural language voice commands was launched with Apple’s Siri, which was rapidly followed by Google, Microsoft, and others all offering what will become a mobile electronic concierge on your phone, tablet, and television. The technology will rapidly evolve and soon every profession from retailers to maintenance workers will have a Siri-like assistant. Adding an e-personal assistant to support an existing product and/or service will create many new careers.
3D Web will transform today’s Internet experience (which is like looking at a flat piece of paper with a few photos, embedded video, and a few hyperlinks) to a true 3D experience, similar to todays video games, where you can virtually walk into a showroom, look around and both listen to and see the new car you are interested in, or whatever the website is trying to show you. This will employ many new graphic artists, designers and programmers.
Connected Intelligent Objects using chips, microsensors and both wired and wireless networks will create a rapidly growing “Internet of things” sharing real-time data, performing diagnostics, and making remote repairs. Many jobs will be created as we add intelligent connected sensors to bridges, roads, buildings, homes and much more. By 2020, there will be well over a billion machines talking to each other and people will install them.
Advanced Robotics and Automation will take a giant leap forward thanks to networked sensors, artificial intelligence, and Siri-like voice communications, taking the next level of repetitive jobs from humans. This will create many new career opportunities from design, programming, and installation to service and maintenance, to name just a few.