Gear Up for the Future: A look at how fast the business world has changed in just 10 years.
10 Years ago, none of us had iPhones, and we were all just getting the hang of the Facebook deal. Not only has the world changed drastically over the last 10 years, the workplace has also undergone a significant facelift, to say the least.
Job aggregator Adzuna reports that 50% of modern day job seekers are able to apply for jobs that we could hardly conceptualize a decade ago. Another study estimate suggests that this rate of change isn’t about to slow down, with roughly 65% current primary school children who will end up working jobs we aren’t even dreaming about at the moment. The World Economic Forum’s Human Capital Index tends to agree.
From Social Media Managers and Cloud Specialists, here’s a roundup of 10 innovative jobs that didn’t exist 10 years ago.
- App Developer
Apps, which are used solely for smartphones, weren’t really a big deal 10 years ago since the iPhone first saw the light of day in mid-2007. Things have evolved pretty quickly since half of the adults in the world now own smartphones. App developers are in high demand especially since Android’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store have been releasing 1.6 million and 1.5 million apps annually since 2015.
- Social Media Manager
In retrospect, nobody would have ever thought that social media would become such a big thing in 2017, but with Facebook now boasting more than 1.5 billion users, businesses are leveraging its power. This, in turn, created a job position for social media managers within companies who are able to manage their online presence with the likes of Twitter and Instagram as well.
- Uber Driver
Founded in 2009, Uber, the app-based taxi-hailing company created millions of jobs for people around the world. It’s rated as one of the world’s most valuable startups, and with the company’s vision of expanding into the self-driving car’s market, evolution is the name of Uber’s game.
- Cloud Computing Specialist
Modern society would have thought you were mad if you announced that you worked in ‘the cloud’ a decade ago, but today, everybody has an idea of what you’re referring to. Google’s approach to software – a.k.a. cloud computing – might have its humble roots planted in 2006, but today it is estimated that over 50% of all U.S. businesses use cloud software. This means that jobs in cloud management, strategizing, and engineering is still opening up for thousands of job seekers across the globe.
- Data Analyst
Data within the business world grows with an average of 40% annually. This means that companies now have the need to employ professionals who are able to analyze and process all of this information.
- Content Creators for YouTube
Video-sharing platforms such as YouTube have made ‘vlogging’ (video blogging) a very real, highly paid career. Become a star in vlogging these days and you could be earning millions, thanks to the power of social media, sponsorships, and the right marketing.
- Sustainability Manager
Besides the fact that ‘green’ companies are popping up left, right, and center these days, even the businesses out there that don’t do business with the green image are hiring sustainability managers. Why? Well, because sustainability is becoming more and more important to companies. They’re looking at innovative ways in which they can use the resources they have at their disposal more effectively and how they can run their businesses on a more environmentally-friendly basis.
- Millennial Generation Expert
Sure, the Millennials of today were still in school ten years ago, but today, we need experts who understand the way Millennials operate and think. That’s exactly where the position of Millennial Generation Expert came into existence. Millennial Experts help businesses better understand what core values and expectations they should value in order to better communicate and engage with these types of employees within their companies.
- Drone Operators
10 years ago, the only drones most of us were aware of were the ones used by the military. Today, drones are used for hundreds of purposes, and they also need experts ‘driving’ them. The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International goes as far as to state that they expect more than 70,000 jobs being created within this industry over the next few years.
- Chief Listening Officer
The role of a Chief Listening Operator is to tune into and monitor what’s happening on social media channels. These personnel members engage with a business’ audience and keep management informed about what their customers think about the brand. Mentions of companies are now being monitored thanks to the help of software like PeopleBrowsr, a tool enabling them to ‘listen’ to what their customers are saying across various social media platforms.
Final Thoughts
It’s clear to see that technological advances haven’t only changed the way we lead out lives these days, but that it has also impacted the kind of jobs we’re able to apply for in modern times. More new jobs keep on being created within the technology and green markets, and as time passes, these numbers are only set to expand even further!
