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GLOBAL organisations are rethinking and redesigning the future of work based on the various technological changes that are taking place within all industries with regard to how future generations will be organising their work structures. Moreover, advanced countries will be re-evaluating their policies and infrastructure, as well as reforming their government institutions to align themselves with future requirements.
In Pakistan, this very important transition is being completely overlooked. Our elected leaders have been given latitude to get away without producing any real results which the economy desperately needs. In the meantime, the world is moving forward at lightning speed and other countries are creating the building blocks of successful policies that will be executed in decades to come. These policies, economic readiness, ability to harness and foster renewed thinking with regards to the future of work, are of paramount importance.
The future will potentially be based on advanced robotics, machine-to-machine learning, new and fast technological breakthroughs in the fields of genetics, artificial intelligence, and augmented realities. Therefore, essential reforms required to institutionalise the redesigning of the new era are being envisioned at this time.
It is becoming apparent that many labour-intensive, repetitive tasks will be overtaken by smart machines.
In Pakistan, we are at a crossroads, with our youth making up the major part of our population, diminishing job creation and an economy which continues to be debt driven. It is time that the new government took this significant and critical agenda very seriously. The importance of this topic, the disconnect of the government’s fundamental institutions, the lack of ability of Pakistani organisations to understand this subject in greater detail, and the lack of preparedness of the masses is abundantly clear. Each one of these stakeholders needs to be made aware of this looming crisis so they can take appropriate steps.
Real momentum on this imperative initiative can only be created if the Pakistani government can fully comprehend the significance of this subject. Comprehensive grass-root policies must be fundamentally instituted which provide a real understanding of the future of work and the real-world impact of technological changes in the lives of our urban and rural populations. The understanding of digitalisation must extend beyond the current social media campaigns which are created to market the objectives of political parties and their governments. Wide-ranging reforms must be designed and implemented at the level of federal government, provinces, tehsils, districts, and villages.
The ability of the government to address this fundamental issue within the secondary education curriculum is also of vital importance. Our teachers and faculty must be made aware of the rapidly evolving future of work, so they are ably equipped to impart advice to the young generations and convey the exciting opportunities that lie ahead.
It is becoming apparent that many labour-intensive, repetitive tasks will be overtaken by smart machines. The creation of real capabilities and carving out new markets for our young people, should be the central and basic duty of the government to ensure the country is put on the path of prosperity, with its young minds ready to take on new global challenges.
For Pakistan to be successful, radical, out-of-the-box thinking is required and this can only be empowered with the analysis of data. These data touch points must be created within each district, tehsil, and village to understand population behaviours, its segmentations, and to create policy frameworks which can deliver real results for future generations.
Pakistan has been evolving rapidly with the advent of mobile telephony. Digital technologies will soon lead to extensive changes in the minds of Pakistani citizens, who will accordingly alter their approach in interactions with government organisations. The current bureaucratic structures, based on decades-old frameworks, will be ill equipped to serve the needs of the new generations.
The government must recognise the new sets of skills which are required as well as any existing skills which will soon disappear from the market space. Government officials must grasp the new wave of technologies and their potential impact on Pakistan. It is important to note that not all labour will be replaceable, but technologies will certainly revolutionise the nature of jobs, in some cases making them redundant.
We must understand that the future of work is bright for Pakistan, if we could take advantage of this precise time to plan and get ready to use technology in order to push start productivity which could assist in the creation of new jobs, and hence enhance the standard of living.
Pakistan could suffer immensely since low-wage dynamics, which create lower productivity growth, will be at the heart of new technological changes, and robotics and machines will continue to replace such tasks. If Pakistan could use these changes wisely, it could tackle the consequences of wages and its imbalances.
The shorter cycle of reallocation of labour with regard to this idle time, and concepts of temporary unemployment and insurance will need to be sorted.
The government must understand that the creation of human capital is the key for it to compete effectively in global markets. It is the primary role of every government to establish new opportunities for the less prepared in society, creating safety nets and establishing institutions which could help its masses to gain new prospects.
Thus, effective spending on education, alignment to the demands of new markets, of new skills, of new opportunities, must remain the real endeavour. We must foster lifelong learning in the minds of young Pakistanis, by creating right curriculums in high schools, and institutions will have to create fundamental new design thinking which could address the real issues of the changing world. Pakistan has an opportunity of reducing wealth inequality, if only it could understand the major opportunity that lies ahead. However, in the past, we have missed many revolutionary trends and we must ensure that history does not repeat itself.
The writer is former deputy CEO, Zong, and a business strategist and management consultant.
Published in Dawn, September 17th, 2018
