The report Workforce of the Future – The Competing Forces Shaping 2030 by PwC (2017) aims to prepare people for the future workforce changes by developing four scenarios of ‘Worlds of Work’ for 2030. WPC emphasizes the change that is happening and even accelerating, motivating organisations, governments and individuals to think about possible future scenarios and act accordingly. The four worlds are shaped based on a survey with 10,000 respondents in China, India, Germany, the UK and the US and gave insights into how people think the workplace will evolve and how this will affect employment prospects and future working lives.
The report (PwC, 2017) then outlines the creation of the four ‘worlds of work’ (p. 3). PwC identifies five ‘megatrends’ (p. 6), which are forces reshaping society and with it, the world of work. They are expected to cause economic shifts redistributing power, wealth and competition around the globe. PwC explains the first megatrand: technological breakthroughs increase productivity through automation and artificial intelligence, but change the nature and number of jobs available. Second, changes in the size, distribution and age profile of the world population will cause demographic shifts, which will affect pensions, talent ambitions and all business models. Furthermore, rapid urbanisation will turn cities into important agents for job creation, and traditional energy industries will experience a rapid reconstruction due to resource scarcity and climate change. Lastly, PwC describes shifts in global economic power to cause unemployment, migration and large-scale automation. The megatrends form the foundation for PwC’s scenarios in their four ‘worlds of work’. Additionally, PwC added some distinctively human dynamics into the scenario analysis, since the way humans respond to challenges and opportunities, public sentiment and governments will influence the forces underpinning each scenario. Collectivism, individualism, business fragmentation and corporate integration in combination with the five megatrends were the basis for developing the four ‘worlds of work’, which are described below.
The first, red world, is illustrated as a perfect incubator for innovation, resulting in organisations and individuals racing to give consumers what they want. The report (PwC, 2017) expects new products and business models to be developed at lightning speed and businesses innovate to create personalisation. Key will be intellectual property and AI, which will be used to identify the specialists a company needs. As a result, there will be a lack of loyalty from the company towards employees: Specialism and skills in demand are highly prized while those with outdated skills will be abandoned.
PwC (2017) shows a second, blue world, in which corporate is king. Company capitalism rules as organisations continue to grow and become more powerful than nation states. Individual preferences are key and will overrule social responsibility. Even though corporates are dominant, workforces are scarce. Special talent is in high demand and the pressure to perform is high. Companies will provide many of the services previously provided by the state to their employees, whereas workers must pay the price of their data to be measured and analysed by employers. PwC predicts an increase in the gap between the rich and poor; People will either have a well-paying job or not a job at all.
The third, green world is described as a world in which corporate responsibility is a business imperative. PwC (2017) defined social conscience, environmental responsibility and diversity focus to go well beyond the financial. Companies will drive people strategies with the belief that the people’s behaviour and their role in society will have a direct link to the organisation’s success or failure. Workers will be attracted by the opportunity to work for an organisation they admire. Nevertheless, competition remains intense for the best talent and therefore financial rewards are still valued as important.
In the last, yellow world, the report (PwC, 2017) expects companies to care. In this world, businesses with a social heart are believed to thrive the market with an emphasis on ethics and fairness. PwC explains that technology innovation will lower barriers to entry and enabled access to crowdfunded capital. Sequentially, entrepreneurial companies had the chance to compete in areas previously dominated by larger companies. On the other hand, the world knows many conflicts about the use of technology, since individuals do not easily take the downside of automation.
PwC (2017) then clarifies that even though the four worlds are markedly different, they all feel the vein of automation and the implications of robotics and AI. The report warns readers for a massive reclassification and rebalancing due to automation but also believes that workers performing tasks which automation cannot yet crack, become more pivotal. PwC notes that this view is supported by business leaders worldwide who responded to their 2017 CEO survey. 52% of the CEO’s are keen to maximise the benefits of automation and are looking for new people skills. PwC highlights the clear message from their analysis: Adaptability – in organisations, individuals and society – is essential for navigating the changes ahead and pivot talent – critical skills that cannot be cracked by machines – will become the ultimate prize. This message is the basis for their recommendations.
Finally, PwC (2017) concludes with recommendations for managing the impacts of the trends shaping the four worlds. PwC emphasizes that the preparation for the future requires collaboration and engagement from governments, organisations and society at large, and articulates a set of calls to action: Act now, plan for an automated world, apply ‘no regrets’ moves that work with most scenarios for organisations and do not be constrained by your starting point, as you might need a more radical change. Further recommendations are for organisations to protect the people not jobs, by nurturing agility and re-skilling, and to start a mature conversation about the future with employees. Lastly, PwC accentuates that the future cannot be ignored and concludes with their belief that organisations and individuals that understand potential futures and plan ahead, will be the best prepared to succeed.