{"id":113296,"date":"2024-02-22T12:40:11","date_gmt":"2024-02-22T17:40:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rbach.net\/?p=113296"},"modified":"2024-02-22T12:40:11","modified_gmt":"2024-02-22T17:40:11","slug":"the-age-of-ai-how-to-future-proof-your-career","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rbach.net\/index.php\/the-age-of-ai-how-to-future-proof-your-career\/","title":{"rendered":"The Age of AI: How to Future-Proof Your Career"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The<\/a>Artificial Intelligence<\/strong> (AI) is reshaping IT careers. However, AI will create a demand for different IT staff staffers. Professor Roland Rust<\/a> at the University of Maryland’s<\/a> Robert H. Smith School of Business<\/a> predicts<\/a> that future jobs will demand different skills. The professor and his team identified<\/a> skills like \u201cpeople management, working with others, emotional intelligence and negotiation skills<\/em>\u201d will be paramount in the age of AI<\/strong>. He points out, \u201cEverybody will be \u2013 and already is \u2013 working with AI.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

\"workingIn an article<\/a> at InsiderPro<\/a> the professor recommends working with AI<\/strong>, \u201cThe key is to recognize that collaborating with AI is essential … it\u2019s best not to compete with it<\/em>.” He suggests that human workers focus on differentiating themselves from AI<\/strong>. “… human workers should focus on what they are naturally good at, which is people skills<\/em>.” Rust says that “… workers should develop the skills necessary to interface with AI, and willingly delegate those aspects of the job for which AI is better-suited.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

In the article, Megan Beck, practice manager at global management company Bain & Co.<\/a>, echoes Professor Rust. She predicts that tech professionals will see a shift in how they achieve success<\/strong>. She explained, “… AI is automating cognitive tasks such as data processing, which means that these cognitive tasks are becoming less valued and higher-level tasks, such as creativity and emotional understanding, are becoming more valued<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is the feeling economy?<\/h3>\n

According to Bing, we are in the Thinking Economy. The Feeling Economy is coming. It is being driven by the advancement of AI. While AI is rapidly assuming a larger share of thinking tasks, it is more difficult to automate emotional intelligence. This is where the human worker\u2019s competitive advantage over machines currently lies, as AI is not expected to outperform human beings in subtle skills like empathy, emotion management, and inspiration for many years. The Feeling Economy is expected to flourish in the future.<\/p>\n

AI and the rise of the feeling economy<\/h3>\n

\"AI<\/a>As artificial intelligence becomes more sophisticated, IT professionals need to hone their soft skills that give them an edge over computers. Professor Rust\u2019s research describes the increasing needs for people skills as the \u201cfeeling economy.<\/strong>\u201d Researchers analyzed Department of Labor data. They observed a rise in tasks involving emotional intelligence, as opposed to cognitive or physical tasks. They also found that a correlation existed between wage growth and tasks involving emotional intelligence<\/strong> compared to cognitive tasks. Professor Rust observer,<\/p>\n

At first, the job skills that require common sense and intuition will be safe … <\/em>Before too long, though, even those skills will be attained by AI, and at that point, only the emotional and empathetic parts of feeling skills will be the differentiator for people. In general, the more people the job touches, the safer the job is from AI. Management and interpersonal communications are the kinds of job characteristics to look for.<\/em><\/p>\n

Consulting firm Gartner<\/a> calls the data social-creative. Emily Rose McRae, director in the Gartner HR practice told InsiderPro, ” … jobs are shifting towards requiring more social-creative skills. This is a trend we expect to see continuing into the future, as AI learns to successfully perform more skills.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

How to future-proof your career<\/h3>\n

Ms. McRae suggested some introspection, to prepare for a future career that includes a heavy dose of AI:<\/p>\n