There are still some people out there who think that modern technology is safely contained in a few industries. But the truth is that it is leaching out and infecting practically every sector of the economy.
Just take medicine for instance. Once upon a time, medicine was a separate discipline to technology. Doctors went about their business independent of what was going on in places like South Korea and Silicon Valley. But all that has changed in this decade at a rapid clip. Technology has started entering hospitals at a rapid clip, and many doctors have been caught off-guard by the change.
The applications of technology aren’t trivial either. Technology is literally doing what people did just five years ago. For instance, IBM has introduced a device that will scan patient records looking for patterns and making drug recommendations. The same company also has a tool that will automatically diagnose diseases based on CT scans of patients, something that doctors used to spend hours doing.
The medical sector isn’t the only industry either. Take sports, for instance. The last football World Cup back in 2014 was one of the most technologically advanced events in history, and thousands of people were required by the organizers to help the event achieve its goals. They needed people who were comfortable with installing high-speed cameras as well as those who could market the event on new digital platforms and social media. Wimbledon - the English tennis event - has also gone digital, thanks to the rise of technology.
Over the next decade, more and more industries are going to be eaten up by technology. What began in media and software will move to sports, medicine, and manufacturing. In the process, these industries will cry out for people who have the right blend of skills. They’ll still need to know about the industries that they’re joining, but they’ll also need to be digitally literature. It’ll be rather like going for an accounting job today. You need to know specific accounting skills, but it is expected that you have a decent command of the English language.
Get The Skills
The first thing that young people need to do, therefore, is pick up some technical skills. Graduate programs by Nanyang Technological University, for instance, help develop young people’s technical, entrepreneurial skills, helping them to compete in an increasingly digitized market. There are also code clubs being set up all over the country, adding to the traditional curriculum which, in most schools, is still focused on 19th-century disciples.
Learn From Others
There are also opportunities for young people to find out more about the ways in which digitization is affecting the economy from others. Think Big Hubs are being promoted all over the world and are meant to be forums where young people can come and listen to speakers as well as learn skills that will be needed in the digital future.
Put Skills To The Test
Finally, young people need to put their abilities to the test. This could be as simple as creating their own YouTube channel and practicing their online marketing to going along to a maker hub and building their own device.
