How do you prepare for a job that doesn't yet exist?
Mapping one’s education in anticipation of jobs that don’t yet exist is simpler than the predictive sage work one might expect. Rather, students can manipulate their career paths to meet the global workforce’s growing needs by looking at those industry sectors currently missing a technology element, says Joe Lodewyck, MSCIS, University of Phoenix Director of Academic Data and a faculty member.
Stumped already about how to start? Don’t be, he says. You don’t need to be among the cognitive elite like Zuckerberg, Jobs or Gates to make predictive career choices in a technology-driven society. You don’t even need to be a software programmer or database expert, he says.
‘Sometimes, it’s just a matter of finding your passion and realizing that it lies just outside technology, but that technology will one day be needed to continue or advance that job,” says Lodewyck.
Better yet, he emphasizes, all students need to do is recognize and proactively fine tune those four key skills they already possess in order to identify those missing labor gaps. These are: passion, observation, analysis and adaptability.
“Each student and each career situation is going to create a different path to get there so it’s really about the student making it happen,” says Lodewyck.
Passion and observation: Expose the hole in the work fabric attracting you most
The first step to identifying tomorrow’s job opportunities begins with accurately identifying one’s career passion and then getting intimate with the various jobs, concepts or specializations comprising that industry. This motivation essentially mirrors the thought process students engage in prior to enrolling in a specific university program or, if already enrolled, when they declare a major. However, Lodewyck stresses that students ought to select an industry that entices their passions well enough to allow them to excel as opposed to selecting, say, Web programming if they struggle to grasp its basic or mid-level concepts.
This is especially true for adult learners looking to “re-career” and who think getting a technology degree will solve their work issues, he says. “If you pursue getting a degree in the wrong area and you realize you don’t have the aptitude then you are effectively putting yourself in a position to fail again,” Lodewyck says. “You aren’t guaranteed to get one of these future jobs just because you have a degree in technology.”
That is where observation is essential in selecting the correct career path, he says. One can better prepare for jobs that don’t exist by paying attention to existing jobs and then reflecting one’s mental flashlight onto the industry fabric to see which holes allow the light to shine through brightest, according to Lodewyck. In other words, where is the technology still needed to do business in a more efficient or modern way? Students may very well circumvent traditional tech jobs and find the opportunities in other fields, like in medicine (i.e. medical records administrator), science (robotics technician), natural sciences (sustainability officer), or education (technology support administrator), among others.
“You have to be intimate with the industry you want to get involved with and then look for those missing gaps where technology isn’t being used — yet.”
Analysis and adaptability: Prepping programmatic needs now for translatable work skills later
It is then necessary for students to analyze the direction of the trends to help determine the steps to receive that appropriate education, Lodewyck says. In other words, analyzing the global work trends, combined with an identified passion and possible future job path, helps students to formulate whether they need to major in a technology program, like those offered through University of Phoenix College of Information Systems and Technology, or parlay another degree with an IS&T concentration, such as business systems analysis.
Lodewyck says he is a prime example of the latter. He didn’t realize until later in life his true passion lies in education as opposed to being solely a database professional. He has since opted to pursue his doctorate degree in education with a specialization in technology. “It’s about finding a concentration that makes sense to you and, above all else, connecting with it.”
Even if all of your predictive job efforts manifest true, Lodewyck says, a degree is not always enough to be successful. Students must continue to analyze and adapt their skills to the work environment, especially in an era of rapid technological change.
“At University of Phoenix, we are already working on this with our students from the day they start a program and join a learning team,” says Lodewyck. “Each time they join a new learning team, they must analyze their peers and adapt to the efficiencies and deficiencies within the team, and then step up to the process that might not necessarily be their expertise.”
"You must be willing to adapt and take on those challenges [in a work environment] because … you are not going to be at the forefront of any technology-oriented business setting if you can’t embrace change. These are cutting-edge areas and, essentially, cutting edge is always a challenge.”
Educators or businesses better prepare students for future jobs
He disagrees with some published opinions that businesses, such as Google, Apple, or Pfizer, are better equipped than educators to prepare students for future jobs in technology and business. In many instances, he notes, these technologically-advanced companies are seeking workers who already possess the ability to analyze and adapt to the global market.
"I don’t think it’s either one: teachers or the businesses. It truly is the student that is best equipped to prepare themselves for future jobs.”
Yet educators can help guide students to build upon those skills that are needed for any future job.This can be as simple as directing them to outside tools, such as University of Phoenix’s Center for Writing Excellence or Center for Mathematics Excellence, for example. But, he adds, it is ultimately up to the students to take the initiative to adapt themselves to their career ambitions and the future work environment.
"This is one of those areas that I say: ‘You can lead a horse to the water, but you can’t make it drink.’”
