Futuristic jobs prepare to enter mainstream

In a not too distant future, jobs like body-part maker, waste-data handler or climate controller, which today sound like science fiction, may be commonplace. As demand for new positions rises, labor markets will have to adjust to the new reality and in this Romania is no exception. Some new jobs have recently appeared while other existing ones will grow in importance, pundits tell BR.

By Otilia Haraga

Children born today may one day tell you that they have found a job as an omnipotence delimiter or personal medical apothecary. Do many people even know what these job titles mean? Not really, but the article “Top ten well-paid jobs of the future” in The Telegraph suggests that we should learn what they are about, because they will be highly sought after on the labor market as soon as 2030.

An omnipotence delimiter, for instance, reins in our belief that anything is possible and we are all-powerful, while a personal medical apothecary provides a custom range of alternative therapies. How about a child designer who designs offspring that fit parental requirements, or a waste data handler, who disposes of your data waste in a responsible way? Or, on a more traditional note, a vertical farmer, who creates space-saving vertical crops?

An aging population poses the challenge of caring for and assisting the elderly. This is why The Telegraph argues that existing jobs like home carer, a person who looks after the elderly in their own homes, or elderly wellbeing consultant, who specializes in holistic and personalized care for this age category, will become increasingly important.

In this area, emerging professionals such as a memory augmentation surgeon, who helps preserve and improve memory in the aging population, and a nano-medic, who creates implants for self-monitoring and self-medication, may also make an important contribution.

If you harbor doubts about some of the suggestions, it is worth bearing in mind that a lot of the jobs that are hot property today did not even exist 5-10 years ago.

“Global trends are leading to the automatization/efficiency of certain activities and this impacts all domains, which is why certain jobs have or will disappear from the labor market. But at the same time, others will appear, especially in fields that have developed over recent years and continue their growing trend: IT, green energy, biotechnology, pharma and healthcare,” says Bogdan Badea, business development manager at Accace.

He explains that to a greater or lesser extent, changes are taking place even at the level of existing jobs. “Responsibilities change, everything is moving online, people must learn to work in various applications/systems, and certain activities that in the past were done offline will shift to digital,” says Badea.

Ariana Badin, director marketing, communication & PR at UPC Romania, says that Richard Riley, education state secretary in the USA, has since 2010 reached two essential conclusions on the new global labor market. The first refers to a ranking that indicates that the most in-demand jobs of 2010 did not exist as such in title and specific description in 2005.

The second relates to the statistical prediction that 80 percent of the jobs of the future will be based on aptitudes in the STEM area (science, technology, engineering and math).

“Since the international appearance of social media jobs four-five years ago, the position of chief listening officer has emerged, meaning a professional responsible for understanding and making business decisions depending on reactions in the social media. The Romanian market has adjusted extremely fast, generating a range of jobs synchronized with these CRM necessities, from social media specialist to digital consultant,” says Badin.

Badea gives another example: developer of online applications for smartphones, a market which is set to reach revenues of USD 46 billion at global level. Other professions he cites are SEO specialist, social media specialist, green energy/alternative energy specialist and 3D graphics and print expert.

Criteria for assessing the abilities and qualifications for these job titles are not very different from what is now used for any existing job, he says. “Take the social media specialist: companies will be looking for a creative person who knows how to communicate formally/informally, is passionate and has know-how about social networks. Last but not least, they will be looking for a person who yields results, is present on these networks and has managed to create a personal brand/a group of followers. So the future of this job consists in the creation of this ‘digital CV’ and traditional interviews will be replaced by concrete results,” says Badea.

Some of these jobs have already appeared in Romania and are riding the wave, he adds. “We cannot predict when they will become vital. Usually, the demand for certain jobs and the entry of certain companies on the market triggers the creation of these jobs.”

Data from BestJobs online recruitment site show that jobs that involve new technologies such as OS developer for various mobile platforms are very much in demand even now. Positions in marketing that use new promotional tools are also well rated. “At the moment, we have over 30 jobs available on BestJobs for search engine optimization expert or Google AdWords specialist,” says Andreea Mihaescu, PR Executive at BestJobs.

IT, product development and online are the fields that will dictate most emerging jobs in the future, because “we are in a market where the progress of technology is exponential and induces in clients the need for innovating integrated services,” says Celesta Padineanu, human resources manager UPC Romania. Moreover, she says, “next to technology, an important differentiator is the experience of the client in the customer support areas where the need for specialists will be high.”

In the internet field, Badin predicts three job areas that will be relevant: sustainability (handled by sustainability experts), data mining (handled by data mining engineers) and user experience (handled by user interface designers).

The Romanian market is starting to see job titles like social media specialists, django developer, ruby developer and social game master, say Leonard Rizoiu, business unit manager at Barnett McCall/Gi Group Romania and Bogdan Sava, account manager at ePayPoint/Gi Group Romania. Prospective employees in these positions should have, as general traits, an open mind, flexibility, orientation towards results and a willingness to keep up to date with the evolution of technologies. “These jobs could have a growing importance from the second and third quarters of this year, after starting to make their presence felt in the appointments lists in recent years,” they say.

New jobs bring new challenges

As some jobs become a thing of the past and other new ones emerge, the labor market has to face the changes. “Generally, the labor market should be constantly adjusting and oriented towards future jobs. One example is the decision of certain hypermarket chains in Western Europe and the United States to eliminate cashiers, so customers scan their own products and pay at the end. If this is adopted in Romania, many cashier jobs will disappear,” says Badea.

From the legal viewpoint, he explains that these positions would have to be created in the Classification of Occupations in Romania. Also, responsibilities and performance criteria should be outlined for those jobs.

“The labor legislation is changing to legally encompass these new professions. One example is tele-work – defined in the labor contract as IT activities taking place either at the headquarters of the employer or outside it. This new concept takes into consideration the evolution of work relations, technological changes and the acceleration of work processes that require a high degree of mobility and flexibility,” the two Gi Group representatives explain.

As far as the way the school curricula should be shaped to encourage the take-up of these new jobs, they encourage schools to take into consideration the current needs of the economy, while the education system should reflect changes to the labor market.

However, some pundits do not believe change to the curriculum would help. “Since the school curriculum is not adjusted to the needs of the market right now, I do not believe that a change in it would have a major impact on the labor market. The most important thing is that after graduating from high school, young people have more options than the existing universities, or in parallel there should be alternative schools/classes to help them adjust to their future jobs” says Badea.

Adaptation is key. To give one example, Gi Group representatives quote opinion leaders who believe that if IT specialists do not adjust their skills to changes brought about by cloud technology in the infrastructure of companies, their jobs will be in danger.

In Romania, specialists are calling for regulations/facilities for taxes paid by employers as well as regulations governing the work program. “At macro level, I believe it is useful to facilitate access to EU funds to stimulate the development of internship programs, the development of technical and managerial skills as well as facilitating employees’ access to international programs and the exchange of experience,” says Padineanu.

She also urges for a reverse of the brain drain. “Companies should increasingly find solutions to attract and retain personnel, and offer both financial and development advantages to the young people who are currently choosing to evolve on other markets,” she says.

otilia.haraga@business-review.ro

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