Due to its scope, scale and complexity, the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) is unlike anything we have ever experienced before. The question becomes - is an organisation ready to face this new era of work and associated resourcing?
The 4IR is the fourth major industrial era since the initial industrial revolution of the 18th century and is characterised by a merging of technologies that ‘blurs the lines’ between the physical, digital and biological spheres – all of these together known as cyber-physical systems.
What makes the 4IR even more disruptive than the revolutions that have preceded it are its speed (everything happens at a much faster pace than ever before), breadth and depth (with a great number of radical changes occurring simultaneously), as well as the complete transformation of entire systems.
The main drivers of change in the 4IR are high-speed mobile internet, artificial intelligence (AI), big data analytics and cloud technology – all disrupting industries at a rapid rate, including the modern workplace and its resourcing. Locally, the traditional model of work is being challenged by 4IR and its associated technologies from the perspective of:
When it comes to populating a growing organisation with the required diverse skills, some of the main considerations and changes we can expect from the 4IR include:
There is a new buzzword in the business world - adaptability quotient, or AQ. AQ is loosely defined as ‘the ability to adjust course, product, service, and strategy in response to unanticipated changes in the market’. Along with traditional measurements like intelligence quotient (IQ) and emotional intelligence (EQ), AQ is another factor increasingly used to determine an employee’s value in a world that demands innovation and necessitates change.
We are still at the beginning stages of the 4IR, and it will require entirely new organisational and economic structures to grasp its full value. What we do know is that to remain competitive, companies must be at the frontier of innovation in all its forms. Strategies, which primarily focus on cost reduction, will be less effective than those that are based on offering products and services in more innovative ways.
HR departments are required to re-evaluate their job descriptions and they need to recruit for a world which does not yet exists. Monies must be effectively spent so as to enhance those skills which will prepare a workforce for the 4IR. Populating an organisation with a mix of fixed-term employees, independent contractors, part-time employees and permanent employees will be the new normal. The one size fits all model will cease to exist.
Companies who wish to thrive as we enter 4IR must be able to adapt to a changing workforce, one which will comprise both machines and humans. The role of HR will need to be realigned with the way work essentially ‘gets done’, pushing boundaries to bring new solutions to a business. Organisations will need to look beyond technology to find ways to give more people the ability to positively impact their families, organisations and communities.