Just a week before its annual meeting in Davos began on 13^th Jan 2025, the World Economic Forum (WEF) released its “The Future of Jobs” Report 2025. From skill gaps to employee wellbeing, the WEF report analyses the expectations of over 1,000 global employers and provides new insights on how socio-economic and technology trends will shape the workplace of the future (2025 – 2030).

The Future of Jobs report starts with the introduction relating to the global labour market landscape in 2025. The first four chapters deal with Drivers of Labour-Market Transformation, Jobs Outlook, Skills Outlook and Workforce Strategies respectively.

Five factors, individually and in combination, that will drive a net creation of 78 million jobs are Technological Change, Geoeconomic Fragmentation, Economic Uncertainty, Demographic Shifts and The Green Transition. These are among the major drivers expected to shape and transform the global labor market by 2030. Technological change is expected to have the biggest impact on jobs – both creating and displacing them. 

A net increase of almost 7% of today’s workforce by 2030 is largely thanks to new technologies and the accelerating energy transition. The fastest-growing jobs, ranging from big data specialists to AI and machine learning specialists, technological skills are projected to grow in importance more rapidly than any others in the next five years.

Technology-related roles are the fastest- growing jobs (specialists) in percentage terms, for Big Data, AI and Machine Learning and Application Developers, Robots and autonomous systems, Information / Cyber Security, Data Warehousing Specialists, UI and UX Designers, Internet of Things Specialists, Data Analysts and Scientists, DevOps Engineers, Robotics Engineers, Blockchain Developers, Data Engineers, Digital Transformation Specialists, Semiconductors and computing technologies, Quantum and encryption, Satellites and space technologies and Green and energy transition roles, including Autonomous and Electric Vehicle Specialists.

A range of skills that would be on the rise in the next five years include, AI and big data, Networking & cybersecurity, Technological literacy, Creative thinking, Resilience, flexibility and agility, Curiosity and lifelong learning, Leadership and social influence, Talent management, Analytical thinking, Environmental stewardship, Systems thinking, Motivation and self-awareness, Empathy and active listening, Design and user experience, Service orientation and customer service, Teaching and mentoring Programming, Marketing and media, Resource management and operations, Quality control, Global citizenship, Multilingualism, Sensory-processing abilities, Dependability and attention to detail, Reading, writing and mathematics, Manual dexterity, endurance and precision.

Analytical thinking remains the most sought- after core skill among employers, with 7 out of 10 companies considering it as essential in 2025. This is followed by resilience, flexibility and agility, along with leadership and social influence. AI and big data top the list of fastest-growing skills, followed closely by networks and cybersecurity as well as technology literacy. Complementing these technology-related skills, creative thinking, resilience, flexibility and agility, along with curiosity and lifelong learning, are also expected to continue to rise in importance.

Existing and emerging skills differences between growing and declining roles could exacerbate existing skills gaps. The most prominent skills differentiating growing from declining jobs are anticipated to comprise; resource management and operations; quality control; programming and technological literacy. Given these evolving skill demands, the scale of workforce upskilling and reskilling expected to be needed remains significant. Skill gaps are categorically considered the biggest barrier to business transformation.

One interesting observation, notes the report, specifically, with respect to training demand for generative AI skills is concerned, there is significant growth globally, in training among both individual learners and enterprises, with India and the United States leading in enrolment numbers. However, the drivers of demand differ. In the US, demand is primarily driven by individual users, whereas in India, corporate sponsorship plays a significant role in boosting GenAI training uptake.

Another finding caught my attention. The Shifting human-machine frontier: automation versus augmentation. The interplay between humans, machines and algorithms is redefining job roles across industries. Automation is expected to drive changes in people’s ways of working, with the proportional share of tasks performed solely or predominantly by humans expected to decline as technology becomes more versatile. Future of Jobs Survey respondents estimate that, today, 47% of work tasks are performed mainly by humans alone, with 22% performed mainly by technology (machines and algorithms), and 30% completed by a combination of both. By 2030, employers expect these proportions to be nearly evenly split across these three categories/approaches.

The above is a very brief analysis of the first four chapters. The report covers the likely rise and decline all types of jobs, ranging from Postal Service Clerks, Cashiers and Ticket Clerks, Personal Care Aides, Nurses, Delivery Drivers, Building Construction Workers, Salespersons and Food Processing Workers etc. However, in the above analysis, I have covered only the jobs & skills that are more relevant to the ICT and technology-world in general.

The disruptions of recent years have underscored the importance of foresight and collective action. The report does inspire an ambitious, multistakeholder agenda – one that equips workers, businesses, governments, educators and civil society to navigate the complex transitions ahead.

This is a two-part blog. The first part of the blog provides a summary of the latest report as to what it reveals about “workplace of the future” in general. The second part of the blog throws light specifically on its implications on the mfg. / industrial sector. Stay connected for the latter half of this blog.

 

Author:  Narayan Gokhale , Vice President & Principal Analyst - Research & User Consulting at QKS Group