AI will automate some tasks. For example, some accounting tasks will be automated. On the other hand, being replaced by a machine for doing that job will be rare. Certain jobs will be more resistant to AI than others. Creative jobs, jobs that require the use of emotional intelligence, and jobs that require complex decision-making will likely be resistant to AI. The jobs that will be most at risk will be those that require repetitive tasks and/or adhere to a strict set of rules. The best way to move forward with AI at this point is to begin using AI to do the tasks while continuing to develop your skills.
Nearly quarterly a new article is published on how millions of workers will lose their jobs. No profession is safe, given the AI 'end of jobs' dystopia articles. But how accurate are these predictions?
The accuracy of the predictions depends on the profession. Fear of having your job replaced by a machine is extremely valid for many sectors. While some jobs may be fully replaced, other jobs will be transformed beyond recognition and some jobs will be invented that we can't even imagine now. The first step to solving this issue is to figuring out which jobs will be replaced.
The most trustworthy and most cited figures are estimates of how many jobs will be lost to AI.
The 2023 Goldman Sachs report estimates that AI will do 300 million full time jobs across the world. The report also said that AI will not replace all of the tasks of a worker. Most workers will have parts of their work tasks automated, but that does not mean that they will fully lose their job to the AI.
A different study from the McKinsey Global Institute reported that by 2030, about 30% of the hours currently worked in the US could be automated. This is also about task automation. This includes things like entering data, scheduling tasks, summarizing documents, and creating standardized reports.
The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2023 is more optimistic. While AI is expected to automate 85 million roles, it is expected to create 97 million jobs in the next two years. A net positive, but only for those who will learn new skills.
What Jobs Will Be Most Impacted by AI Automation?
Jobs that will be the most impacted by AI automation have one thing in common. They all contain predictable and repetitive tasks. Some examples are:
-Clerks processing data
-Customer service jobs that deal with routine questions
-Simple accounting jobs
-Document reviewing paralegals
-Reading routine scans in radiology
-Entry level software development jobs that involve writing standard code
This doesn’t mean that everyone who has these jobs will be unemployed by 2029. It means the amount of these jobs that will be done by humans will decrease. One law firm might employ three paralegals instead of ten. One radiology department in a hospital might use AI to complete primary scans, leaving the reviewing of specialty cases to a human radiologist.
Why Repetitive Roles Are Most at Risk
AI has the ability to recognize patterns. When machine learning models are provided with enough examples, they can recognize patterns and identify outliers in large datasets, even in difficult tasks such as detecting malignancies in X-ray images, predicting the likelihood of customer attrition, or identifying and blocking fraudulent transactions. AI then has the potential to outperform humans in processing input data that is consistent or repetitive and is governed by rules.
Which Jobs Are Most Resistant to AI Replacement?
Jobs involving the ability to connect with other people, the ability to judge a situation, and the ability to think creatively will be more difficult to automate, and include the following:
- Mental health practitioners and counselors
- Trained trades (e.g. electricians, plumbers, and HVAC technicians)
- Teachers and educators, especially early childhood
- Creative directors and brand strategists
- Social workers and advocates
- Engineers and architects
Relying on robotics remains the ability to manipulate objects in an unpredictable environment. While robotics can be used to build predictable structures, such as automobiles, they cannot perform the task of molding into buildings that were designed in a non-standard fashion and contain unpredictable structures.
The Emotional Intelligence Advantage
Empathy and trust are skills that current AI systems and tools lack the ability to foster and recognize. The value a therapist brings is not simply dispensing knowledge; it's the relationship that is developed and maintained across a series of interactions. A skilled negotiator or performer is able to interpret and synthesize the emotions of a group or individual. A skilled teacher adjusts based on emotions exhibited by their students, whether it is frustration or excitement.
How AI is Altering Rather than Eradicating Jobs
Currently, most workers will not be ‘replaced’ by AI. In fact, the opposite is currently true. AI has become integrated throughout the professional world. It is already as ubiquitous as the use of emails and spreadsheets.
Let’s look at some examples.
- AI draft generators allow marketing professionals to draft an initial message, email, or ad in seconds, but a human talent is still required to edit and promote the draft and ensure it aligns with brand voice, strategy, and tone.
- Software engineers now have the ability to use tools to predict the next line of code and identify bugs. This has shifted the role of the software engineer to structural design and troubleshooting.
- AI is now being used by doctors to promote creative thinking and stimulate a possible diagnosis.
- AI’s ability to identify trends has assisted financial professionals in analyzing data to promote financial investment options.
AI has the ability to do inconsequential tasks in the workplace.
How to Best Adapt to the Shifting Job Market
Do not take a passive approach. What has actually worked in the past is:
1. Be honest and assess what tasks in your job can be automated. If a bulk of your work consists of predictable, routine tasks, then practice skills to perform the tasks that cannot be automated and that require critical thinking.
2. Learn to incorporate AI tools and skills into your work. Those that embrace AI and understand its role in the workplace and how to best use it will be more valuable than those that resist it.
3. Invest in and develop your emotional and social intelligence and creative skills. These are more difficult to automate and will be more desirable in the future.
4. Understand your sector’s AI adoption rate. Different sectors have different disruption rates. Differentiating healthcare from construction AI is even more apparent at the micro-level. Understand your industry.
5. Create verifiable work. AI doesn’t impact creativity in the way that work does that is easy to reproduce. AI does not create breakthroughs - work that has real impact and results will be considered even more valuable than it is today.
FAQs
Will AI replace software developers?
Significant parts of the coding work that is repetitive will be automated by AI. Developers will be able to work at a higher level of abstraction. This work requires an understanding of systems and collaboration to solve complex problems. Demand will remain for this work. Junior developers will be automated out of work that requires basic coding and repetitive work.
In the next 5 years what percent of work will be automated by AI?
30% of the work in the U.S. will be programmable by 2030 according to research from the McKinsey Global Institute. This refers to the programming of tasks and the automation of work. Employees will not lose their jobs; they will lose some of the work they are responsible for.
Will AI replace white-collar or blue-collar jobs?
The goal of automation has been to target repetitive manual work. AI will change this and close the gap from automation of white-collar repetitive work. AI will impact work of knowledge and cognitive tasks even more. Skilled trades will be able to withstand this even more as they involve work that is not easily predictable.
What industries will face the most disruption from AI?
The most drastic changes from AI will occur in the financial, legal, and customer service industries, as well as content creation. Healthcare will rapidly expand AI into its diagnostics. AI in software development will continue to grow. Manufacturing and construction are slower to change due to the complexities of the real world.
How can I know if my job is threatened the most?
Jobs most threatened by AI will be easier to define as a set of guidelines or a process with defined inputs and outputs. Examples of jobs that will be more resistant to AI will require different types of skills or involve more social interaction, like teaching, or jobs that require a more hands-on approach, like many types of trades.
The Bottom Line: Adapt Early, Not Later
We know AI will create more changes to the job market. What we do not know is how extensive the changes will be in five years. The employees who are most vulnerable to AI are the ones most resistant to it. Employees who embrace AI will be the most successful.
When it comes to the impacts of AI on your job, the real question is: who will adapt first?
