The acceleration and the fluctuation of the events in the recent days, poses several question marks for the companies, regarding on how to approach the future. Today it is essential to have alternative scenarios and the flexibility to go beyond the Covid-19 pandemic and the war. The only way to identify the opportunities on time, is to be prepared.
The cost of not being prepared is the so-called future shock or the black swan effect: suddenly the unexpected happens. It is therefore also necessary to re-imagine the skills of the future searching to exploit possible opportunities, all with a “frugal” approach that leads to solving problems and facing difficulties by turning them into successes.
The “it has always worked so far” or “it has always been done like this” had some background in the past, and planning a strategy for the future, both at personal and corporate level, was “quite simple”; and the stability of the framework, even if complex, guaranteed some results that were considered quite reliable for a certain time period.
Today, on the contrary, while it is important to define a path that gives shape and meaning to concrete actions, it is a priority to develop a new DNA in the company, new flexible skills; that is to acquire as quickly as possible, the ability to adapt the strategy and the mind-set, when a change is perceived on the horizon.
It is necessary to develop and implement a future-oriented mindset, acquiring the ability to read the present; explaining the meaning of what is happening; observing the ongoing changes, and imagining possible future scenarios, even if negative.
How to get prepared for the future and which will be the 10 most demanded soft skills in 2025?
According to the Future of Jobs Report of the World Economic Forum, that maps the jobs and the skills of the future, the share of the basic skills that will change will be of 40%, and half of the workers at all levels will have to requalify until 2025, by acquiring new soft and digital skills. There are two crucial factors: first, the pandemic economic impacts, and second the automation increase, that is gradually transforming the jobs.
The critical thinking and the problem solving, are at the top skills that the employers are considering that will become increasingly important over the next five years. While self-management skills like the active learning, resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility have grown in recent years. But the technological revolution is transforming the jobs and may also provide the key to creating them and helping us learn new skills. So, it will be necessary to develop new skills in the near future, as the workers need more and more to interface with the technological systems and with the digital platforms.
Problem solving, lean thinking, leadership and self-management, the soft skills of the future
Here are the 10 most important skills identified by the Forum as for the jobs of the future:
1. Analytical Thinking and Innovation.
2. Active Learning and Learning Strategies.
3. Ability to solve complex problems.
4. Critical Thinking and Analytical Skills.
5. Creativity, Originality and Initiative.
6. Leadership and Social Influence.
7. Use of Technology, Monitoring and Control.
8. Technology Design and Programming.
9. Resilience, Stress Management and Flexibility.
10. Reasoning, Problem Solving and Planning.
The laundry sector companies must be activated through a transformation process involving seminars, courses and coaching activities to meet the future requirements that concern critical thinking, innovation, problem solving and leadership, playing an increasingly decisive role in influencing the management decisions and guiding the innovation choices and change that will be crucial in the coming years.
Through new digital skills, like the lean digital, lean marketing, data analysis, big data, new scenarios are emerging for a sector with a strong impact on individual improvement and growth. The skills are also interconnected today, so it is the perfect timing for a transformation that starts with the company “minds” and makes us better prepared for the future events. •
by Alessandro Martemucci,
Detergo Magazine, Number 10, October 2022
