The Future of Jobs 2016 Report of the World Economic Forum (Forum) ranked the following list of world trends as having significant impact on the jobs of millions of people around the world. They are ranked in order from top to bottom as per the report. Papua New Guinea as a developing nation and relies heavily on imports, these developments are worth taking note of.
1: Changing work environments and flexible working arrangements
New technologies are enabling workplace innovations such as remote working, co-working spaces and teleconferencing. Organizations are likely to have an ever-smaller pool of core full-time employees for fixed functions, backed up by colleagues in other countries and external consultants and contractors for specific projects
2: Rise of the middle class in emerging markets.
The world’s economic center of gravity is shifting towards the emerging world. By 2030, Asia is projected to account for 66% of the global middle-class and for 59% of middle-class consumption
3: Climate change, natural resource constraints and the transition to a greener economy
Climate change is a major driver of innovation, as organizations search for measures to mitigate or help adjust to its effects. Yet as global economic growth continues to lead to demand for natural resources and raw materials, over-exploitation implies higher extraction costs and degradation of ecosystems.
4: Rising geopolitical volatility
The geopolitical landscape is constantly changing, with far-reaching implications for global trade and talent mobility, requiring industries such as Oil and Gas or Aviation and Tourism to react and adapt faster than ever before.
5: New consumer concerns about ethical and privacy issues
In many economies consumers are increasingly concerned about a range of issues related to their purchasing decisions: carbon footprint; impact on the environment; food safety; labor standards; animal welfare; and a company’s record on ethical trade. Additionally, internet users have increasingly become aware of issues around data security and online privacy
6: Longevity and ageing societies
Over the next decade, advanced economies will see the effects of an ageing population. Increasingly, people will work past age 65 to secure adequate resources for retirement. At the same time, serving the needs of an older society will create opportunities for new products, services and business models.
7: Young demographics in emerging markets
Much of the developing world is experiencing rapid population growth and faces a very different demographic challenge than advanced economies: devising appropriate education and training systems to prepare an overwhelmingly young population for the workplace. Leading emerging nations continue to move up the skills ladder and improve access to high-quality education, contributing to a dramatic rise in the number of the college-educated and a shift in the global distribution of talent.
8: Women’s rising aspirations and economic power
Women have made significant gains in labor force participation and educational attainment, resulting in an increasingly important role in the economy as both consumers and employees. As a market, women will account for US$ 5 trillion additional consumer spending and more than two thirds of global disposable income over the next decade
9: Rapid urbanization
The world’s urban population is set to double between 2010 and 2050, from 2.6 billion to 5.2 billion. This rapid and unprecedented pace of urbanization, especially in markets such as China and Sub-Saharan Africa, brings with it many opportunities as well as challenges.
Source: https://reports.weforum.org/future-of-jobs-2016/