Careers in a Flat WorldCareers in a Flat World

Chris Shannon,Youth Workforce Program Manager

Merrimack Valley Workforce Investment Board

What is a “Flat World”?

A play on the phrase, “leveling the playing field,” it refers to the way accelerated technology is making possible for people across the globe to compete in a global market.

The Good News? It is possible for individuals and small

companies to compete with and act like big companies!

The Bad News?

You could be competing with young adults across the globe for a job!

Who Will Be the Winners? “The winners will be those who learn the

habits, processes and skills most quickly—and there is simply nothing that guarantees it will be America or Western Europe leading the way.”1

In the future, globalization will be driven by the individual who understand the flat world and adapt quickly to its processes and technology.1

1. Friedman (2005). The World is Flat,: p183.

Beware the Zippies!

From India First generation since India shifted from

socialism to global trade “Young city or suburban residents,

between 15 and 25 years of age.”Feel no guilt of making money or

spending it; upwardly mobilePotentially number 333,000,000!

Source: Friedman (2005). The World is Flat,: p184

Crystal Ball: 21st Century Skills

Information and Communication Skills Information and media literacy Communication skills

Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills Critical thinking/systems thinking Problem identification, formulation and solution Creativity and intellectual curiosity

Interpersonal and Self-Directed Skills Interpersonal and collaborative skills Self-direction Accountability and adaptability Social responsibility

Crystal Ball: Where are the jobs?

The largest percent of the population are the “baby boomers.” As they retire, they will increase the number of persons over the age of 55 by 36 percent!

The number of Hispanics is projected to grow faster than any other racial or ethnic group.

Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2006-07 Edition

Crystal Ball: Where are the Jobs?

What existing jobs will be in demand over the next ten years?

Before you guess…

Approximate Era

Average Number of Jobs Held in Lifetime

1940 1-2

1965 2-4

1990 6-8

2005 10-15

Top Four Industry Sectors?

Education and Health Care

Professional and Business Services

Leisure and Hospitality

“Other Services” (except government)

So what are some new jobs on the horizon?

Look at the following careers and guess what they are…

Artificial Intelligence Technician

Games playing: programming computers to play games such as chess and checkers

Expert systems: programming computers to make decisions in real-life situations (for example, some expert systems help doctors diagnose diseases based on symptoms)

Neural networks: systems that simulate intelligence by attempting to reproduce the types of physical connections that occur in animal brains

Robotics: programming computers to see and hear and react to other sensory stimuli

Computational Linguist A person trained in

computer science and linguistics who uses computers for natural language processing; may program computers to understand natural human languages.

Advances in this field impact the disabled, businesses, writers, law enforcement among others.

Cybrarian

This term is a compound of cyber and librarian and is a library and information science professional that specializes in using the Internet as a resource tool. The term has gained currency among many librarians who use the Internet.

Search Engine Optimizer (SEO) Help retailers

strategize on how to improve their rankings on search engines

Combines math and marketing

Environmental Engineer

Helps design, build, and operate systems for water supply and waste disposal

A lot of data collection and analysis

Assists with pollution control, recycling efforts and other public health projects

Epidemiologist

Specialized scientist who studies health and illness within populations (within a city, hospital, country, etc)

Could work solely within a lab or travel the world as a “virus hunter”

Potential working for government

Enterprise Resource Synergist More and more

businesses are collaborating within and between companies

Have to meld specialties of a knowledge team from diverse backgrounds or regions to maximize efficient teamwork

Highly specialized field

HAVE SEVERAL INTERESTS?

You can combine them to become a specialist or create a new job!

Try this formula:

Your Personal Interests

+ Favorite School Subjects =

Possible Careers

Biology+Computers= BioinformaticianThe hottest of the hot in science right

now! They use computer modeling to predict how drugs will work, saving time and money.

Current predictions say there will be a 100% increase in the field for the next five years. With 3 to 5 years of experience, they could make $120,000.

Detective+Math= Forensic AccountantThese guys ferret out fraud and shady

practices at corporations.With corporate investigations and

shareholder lawsuits spreading like a bad rash, any court case will require these to pour over company books and numbers.

Experienced forensic accountants can easily make $100,000.

Engineering+Cars= Fuel Cell Engineer Fuel-cell powered cars are the wave of the

future. Most automakers are researching and designing fuel-cell and hybrid cars and will be working to roll them out.

Not limited to cars, fuel cells may one day be used in PDA’s, cell phones and laptops.

The engineers who design these vehicles can write their own paychecks. Some now demand up to $120,000.

Horses+Radiology= Mobile Veterinarian Treating large animals in their pens or corrals

lessens further injury and trauma. These high-tech mobile units could treat anything from llamas to circus elephants to zoo hippos!

Veterinary medical advances align with, and sometimes precede advances in human medicine. Technology includes x-ray, ultra sound, and robot-assisted surgery. Expect to pay a lot up front for technology, but once you do, you could make over $60,000 a year.

Water+Engineering= Entrepreneurship! 1 in 10 of you will start your own business.

Some colleges recognize this and offer programs that prepare you to be a successful entrepreneur.

No longer limited to retail, entrepreneurs have background in the Internet, engineering, life sciences, and liberal arts.

One 13 year-old pursued his passions created underwater walkie-talkies now sold at stores like Toys ‘R Us and Kmart and is president of his own toy company.

WORDS OF ADVICE:

Let your passion fuel your career choices, not the

money. In the long run, you’ll be more successful and have a higher sense of satisfaction.

Let me know if you have any questions!

Chris ShannonMerrimack Valley Workforce Investment Board

(978) 682-7099cshannon@mvwib.org