Srotaswini Mohapatra
Pune, 2 August 2024
AI and the Workforce: Industry report urges reskilling and upskilling as 92% of technology roles transform
The AI-Enabled ICT Workforce Consortium, led by Cisco and including industry leaders such as Accenture, Eightfold, Google, IBM, Indeed, Intel, Microsoft, and SAP, along with key advisors, has released its first report titled “The Transformational Opportunity of AI on ICT Jobs.” This detailed analysis offers an in-depth examination of how artificial intelligence impacts nearly 50 top information and communication technology (ICT) roles and provides actionable training recommendations to support the development of an AI-driven workforce.
The initiative and resulting report seek to empower workers to reskill and upskill with recommendations underscored by today’s evolving job requirements. With the introduction of technology and tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Midjourney and the further emergence of AI tools, workers must prepare for digital work environments increasingly adept at mimicking human capabilities. According to a recent World Economic Forum study, 58 percent of surveyed employees believe their job skills will change significantly in the next five years due to AI and big data.
“AI represents a never-before-seen opportunity for technology to benefit humankind in every way, and we have to act intentionally to make sure populations don’t get left behind,” said Francine Katsoudas, Chief People, Policy & Purpose Officer, Cisco, and founding member of the AI-Enabled ICT Workforce Consortium. “Across the Consortium member companies, we have made it our collective responsibility to train and upskill 95 million people over the next 10 years. By investing in a long-term roadmap for an inclusive workforce, we can help everyone participate and thrive in the era of AI.”
Key Findings: Every Job Becomes an AI-Influenced Job
- Key findings from the report offer a holistic view of the impact of AI on ICT jobs, empowering workers and employers to embrace the AI-driven future of work:
- 92 percent of ICT jobs analyzed are expected to undergo either high or moderate transformation due to advancements in AI.
- Entry-level and mid-level ICT professionals are at the forefront of AI transformation with 40 percent of mid-level positions and 37 percent of entry-level positions expected to have high levels of transformation.
- As AI continues to redefine job functions, certain skills will rise in importance (such as AI ethics, responsible AI, prompt engineering, AI literacy, Large Language Models [LLM] architecture and agile methodologies), while others may become less relevant (traditional data management, content creation, documentation maintenance, basic programming and languages, and research information).
- Foundational skills are needed across ICT job roles for AI preparedness, including AI literacy, data analytics and prompt engineering.
- Actionable Insights for Workers and Employers
- The Consortium report provides a thorough examination of AI’s impact on 47 information and communication technology roles across seven job families via a Job Transformation Canvas. The roles were selected based on the highest volume of job postings for the period of February 2023-2024 in the U.S. and Europe, according to Indeed Hiring Lab. Taking a skills-based approach, the Job Transformation Canvas describes each role inclusive of a job description, principal tasks and corresponding skills.
- The Job Transformation Canvas goes further to outline how AI will influence each role and identify future skills required, skills made less relevant by AI as well as those complemented by it. Workers can use the Job Transformation Canvas as a training companion as they ready for an AI-fueled job market. Employers can leverage the report as a training development guide to cultivate and enable their AI-ready workforces.
- Dedication to Training
- Cisco to train 25 million people with cybersecurity and digital skills by 2032.
- IBM to skill 30 million individuals by 2030 in digital skills, including 2 million in AI by the end of 2026.
- Intel to empower more than 30 million people with AI skills for current and future jobs by 2030.
- Microsoft committed to training and certifying 10 million people in digital skills by 2025, surpassing this goal by training and certifying 12.6 million people a year ahead of schedule.
- SAP to upskill two million people worldwide by 2025.
- Google has recently announced over $130 million in funding to support AI training and skills for people across the US, Europe, Africa, Latin America and APAC.
