Everyone is feeling the impact of digitalization and globalization on society and the world of work. According to Boston Consulting Group, around eight million employees will be affected by technological change by 2025. Meanwhile Germany’s population is getting older – and the birth rate is falling. One thing is certain: Every aspect of working life will be permanently changed by digital disruption and demographic change.

Labor market of the future

For some, looking ahead to the future is initially a source of worry because many job profiles will change beyond recognition or disappear altogether. But new professions will also take shape. However most experts are relaxed about the prospects for the coming decades: Despite the huge changes, humans will remain irreplaceable in the world of Industry 4.0. Constant innovation and social change will lead to the emergence of professions that do not yet exist.

Leadership culture

But bosses, too, will need to adopt a new way of thinking; both start-ups and major corporations are capable of pointing the way forward. Instead of the steep hierarchies of the past, agile leadership and iterative process management are what is now needed. Only those who display flexibility in corporate leadership will be capable of maneuvering a business through a society undergoing a transformation. That also involves taking the risk to use new technologies. Cultural diversity and a high degree of employee motivation will also determine economic success in a constantly evolving international market.

Workplace

The digital nomad is a shining example of the job of the future. With notebook under their arm, their workplace is wherever they have access to a stable Wi-Fi connection. That might be in co-working spaces, but also cafés or on the ICE train between Hamburg and Berlin. That is why it is imperative for countries to embrace the trend and expand their digital infrastructure in order to be an attractive destination for the employees of the future.