Unless you are an app developer, website designer, computer engineer, software developer, or any one of those tech jobs, you are not safe from a world that will soon be 100% automated, computerized, and digital. Soon, 80% of all the jobs in the world will be automated, thanks to artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and algorithms. No job is safe, so much so that even allied health professionals are turning to robotics and AI to help them make sense of patient data and provide exemplary patient care.
Who would have thought that AI would completely dominate even the most complicated marketing and advertising tasks? Technology, of course, has many benefits such as higher productivity, better growth, and improved performance. Still, that doesn’t eliminate the fact that people find themselves now trying to play catch-up with jobs that AI and technology can now do by themselves. Tech mogul Elon Musk himself said that AI will overtake most jobs in five years.
What jobs is he talking about? What kind of jobs will be almost obsolete in the future, and what can you do about it? Here’s a simple rundown of these jobs and careers:
Bookkeeping
It makes sense for AI and machine learning to take over bookkeeping in the future. That’s why if you are a bookkeeper, you have to add some skills to your repertoire. Data entry has long been a job that machines can do, but that doesn’t mean bookkeepers don’t have a role to play. If you try to understand how these programs work, then you can carve a niche for yourself. For example, instead of merely collecting and entering data, you can try to learn about taxes and basic accounting. This way, you can analyze the data provided by the client and advise them how they can maximize their tax incentives.
Customer Service
You have probably messaged with a chatbot about your inquiries as a customer. That’s what AI does these days. Customer service representatives don’t require highly technical skills to perform. What they need is to provide information to customers. Machines can do that. Chatbots are becoming the heavyweight these days in customer service-related jobs. They can answer frequently asked questions, process orders and payments, and solve basic customer issues. Only when the problem seems to be more complex than usual will bots refer them for human intervention.
Receptionists
Not that this is anything new. Airports and airlines have been doing self-check-ins for years. Nowadays, hotels, restaurants, and supermarkets are doing these. With the use of touchscreen devices, customers can place orders, check in themselves in hotels, and pay for their groceries. Robots can handle other functions such as putting your groceries in the bags and even putting your luggage on the carousel.
Proofreading
Editing and proofreading are very different jobs, though many people use them interchangeably. Editing is about comprehension, grammar, and tonality, while proofreading is much simpler. This is why machines can proofread a work in seconds. Detecting grammar mistakes, typographical errors, and sentence construction are simple tasks for proofreaders, which programs and apps can do well today.
If you want to continue becoming a proofreader, improve your skills by also being great in correcting the tone of the article or how comprehensible it is to the readers. Proofreading is fast becoming an obsolete job because of the ability of programs such as Grammarly to detect run-on sentences. Look for ways how you can improve your skills.
Market Research Analysts
Analysts will not totally become obsoletes, but companies will need less of them. Research is crucial for every organization, but AI robots can now collect and analyze data by themselves. Their analysis is almost at par with that of actual researchers. They do it faster than most people do, too. In fact, AI and machines can collect data from different sources, put them together, and develop a report that can help organizations with their marketing and advertising strategies.
The ability of machines to understand comprehensive and complex data is putting research analysts in limbo. After all, if computer software can already do their jobs, then what else can they offer? If you are in this field, you need not only analyze data sets; you have to learn how to executive strategies born from them, too.
The world is increasingly becoming dependent on machines, AI, and robotics. Technology is making everything easier and more complicated at the same time. It is high time for people to accept the reality that technology is here to stay, to make life easier, and to take away jobs, too. Upgrade your skills. Improve your knowledge. Technology is man-made. You are still one step ahead of it.
