Futurist warns STEM skills will not always be the key to employment

The left side of our brain is increasingly automatable so what should we be focusing on to ensure we keep our jobs?

It’s time to move on from our obsession with STEM — science, technology, engineering and maths — and focus on emotional intelligence.

That is the message from futurists and career experts as new technologies automate jobs previously driven by the left side of our brains.

Futurist Anders Sorman-Nilsson said our reliance on STEM skills to ensure future employability was misplaced.

Futurist Anders Sorman-Nilsson. Picture: Supplied

“Unfortunately, governments and companies around the world in their short termism have touted the benefits of STEM, which parents in turn have swallowed without analytical challenge,” he said.

“Just like our physical brawns have been automated, so will part of our brains and it is particularly the left side of the brain — associated with mathematics, logic, formulas, and processes — which is most at risk.”

MORE: SEEK reveals job ad and salary growth

MORE: Meaningful work more valuable than a pay rise

Half of Australian workers had already seen their job responsibilities change as a result of automation, research from recruiter Hays revealed.

In an online poll of almost 2000 people, 18 per cent said automation had already “significantly” affected their job, with their duties changing or their role becoming redundant.

Another 32 per cent said their job had been “partially” affected, with some tasks automated and non-routine duties increasing.

Scientific and technical skills may not be the answer to future employability.

Federal Government figures for the five years to 2018 showed employment had increased for some STEM-focused occupations but decreased for others.

For example, the number of software and applications programmers grew by 40 per cent (up 34,400 jobs) and civil engineers by 30 per cent (up 11,600 jobs) but the number of electronics engineers dropped by 52 per cent (down 4400 jobs) and surveyors and spatial scientists by 27 per cent (down 4500 jobs).

Mr Sorman-Nilsson said STEM was a “tired idea” that should at least become STEAM, with an A for arts, or STEMpathy, mixing STEM and emotional intelligence.

“At no other point in history have kids been told that they will fall behind unless they polish and harness the power of their own authentic self,” he said.

Robert Half Australia director Nicole Gorton. Picture: Supplied

New research by recruiter Robert Half revealed 95 per cent of general managers believed it was important for employees to have high emotional intelligence.

It found the greatest benefits included better collaboration (50 per cent believed this), increased motivation and morale (50 per cent), better project management (48 per cent), improved leadership (46 per cent), and effective conflict resolution (25 per cent).

Robert Half Australia director Nicole Gorton said the days of companies looking solely at IQ were over.

“Emotional intelligence — EQ — has become essential to achieving a collaborative and high-performing workplace culture,” she said.

“It allows employees to work competently with others, easily adapt to different environments and effectively deal with challenges, resulting in agile teams who are quicker to react to market changes, which in turn will lead to a more competitive organisation.”

Ms Gorton said jobseekers should be prepared to demonstrate their EQ in a job interview.

POTENTIAL QUESTIONS INCLUDED:

*If you’ve previously reported to multiple managers at the same time, how did you get to know each person’s preferences and juggle conflicting priorities?

*Tell me about a challenging workplace situation you were involved in, either with your peers or someone else in the company. How did you manage that challenge, and were you able to resolve it?

*What would a previous boss say is the area that you need to work on most? Have you taken steps to improve in this area, and if so, what have you tried to change?

*Tell me about a day when everything went wrong and how did you handle it? And in hindsight, how would you have handled it differently?

*If business priorities change, describe how you would help your team understand and carry out the shifted goals.

READ MORE EMPLOYMENT NEWS IN THE CAREERS SECTION OF SATURDAY’S THE COURIER-MAIL, THE ADVERTISER, THE HERALD SUN AND THE DAILY TELEGRAPH