What will the jobs of the future be and how will it impact the business models of tomorrow. Read this profile piece from Turkish newspaper ‘Haber Turk’ and find out.
How did you meet the futuristic point of view? Since when..
I was involved in the Internet industry from the very beginning, running an internet startup in the the first dotcom boom in the mid nineties - but my first real glimpse of the future happened much later - when I moved to Hong Kong. In markets like Japan, Korea and China, I watched young kids with the latest mobile technology and fast broadband connections - breaking all the rules of media, marketing and business. I realised the future was already happening - just in different places. Many of the disruptive technologies we use today were inspired from these markets - including social networking, social gaming, virtual merchandise, mobile banking and group buying.
What kind of changes will hapen in the business models in the future?
Business models are now in a period of dramatic change. One of the biggest changes is the shift from ownership to access. You can see this change in the entertainment industry as the popularity of subscription music services like Spotify or streaming platforms like Netflix are replacing the idea of owning your media. Similarly, sharing services are also becoming popular with consumers. Why own your car, office space or even your holiday house when you can access someone else's asset through AirBNB, LooseCubes or ZipCar?
What exactly does the digital revolution mean to you? Has it started? At which stage are we? What can we expect?
I believe we are now in a state of constant revolution. If anything, the speed of change is increasing rather than slowing down. During the first dotcom boom, many companies went public too early - before their business models or even customer bases had been established. Now, the opposite is true. Consumers are innovating in many cases faster than companies - who are struggling to keep up with the disruptive changes in their own customer's behaviour. The companies that survive this next phase will be the ones capable of understanding how the needs and behaviours of their consumers are changing in real time, and constantly experimenting with products and services to meet their needs.
What sort of attributes people will need to create a difference in the future in the business world?
The most valuable skill for senior leaders in the future will be adaptability. Managers need to deal with what I call the dual horizon problem - understanding what it takes to survive the problems of the present, while developing the capabilities necessary to thrive in the future. The traditional 'commander in chief' model of management is not flexible enough to achieve that objective. Tomorrow's CEO needs to understand and leverage the real time information flows from networks both inside and outside his company in order to keep pace with change. In a way, its like taking a Facebook approach to business strategy.
Will there be a change in the attributes looked for at the blue collars?
The most useful capability for blue collar workers in any organisation is observation and curiosity. Front line workers are in the best position to observe changes in customer behaviour, new market opportunities, or a change in competitor strategy. Smart managers will learn to empower their workers to be open and forthcoming with their feedback and ideas for making changes in the workplace.
Comptres and digital communications; which sectors did the effect most so far? In the future?
The biggest impact of the digital revolution so far has been media and communications. From how we watch TV, listen to music to how we talk and communicate with each other - the Internet has both destroyed industries and created new fortunes. I believe the next big sectors to be transformed will be retail, finance and health.
Top 10 professions of the future? (in no particular order)
Data Scientist
Tech Addiction Counseller
Enterprise Anthropologist
Virtual Girlfriend
Pattern Recognition Specialist
Net Star
Brand Storyteller
Freelance Work Agent
Cyber-Warfare Operative
Professional Video Gamer
In what should the professionals invest to suceed in the future?
Their own brands
Haber Turk