Computers, Jobs and Careers

(via HBS) Which jobs have a future, which will evaporate under the onrush of technology? Will you have a career path next year? Three main types of work that cannot be described in rules and hard for computers to take over are

1. Identifying and solving new problems (if the problem is new, there is no rules-based solution to program).

2. Engaging in complex communication—verbal and non-verbal—with other people in jobs like leading, negotiating, teaching, and selling.

3. Many “simple” physical tasks that are central to janitorial work, waiting on tables, and other service work. (For example, entering an unfamiliar room and making sense of what you see is trivial for a human but extremely difficult to program.)

The challenge of computerized work is not to compete for a declining number of jobs, but rather to respond to the changing mix of jobs. …. more >>>