Revolution in jobs and courses to meet demand for AI at work

The platform has found a surge in conversations about AI jobs and training courses

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Work-focused social media platform LinkedIn has recorded a 70 per cent increase in conversations about artificial intelligence in the past year, including a 41 per cent increase in Australia – a rise that demonstrates the transformative nature of the new technology.

The platform’s Matt Tindale, country manager in Australia and New Zealand, says the increase is stark: “To put that into a bit of context, at the height of cryptocurrency a couple of years ago, the increase of conversations on the platform was about 19 per cent.

“If you look at VR (virtual reality) or augmented reality, even that was huge a couple of years ago but we saw an increase of only about 5 per cent. So, to have an increase of 70 per cent around AI, world of work, transformation and what it means to us generally, just shows you the interest around it, both from what it is doing now and into the future.

“We’re also at the same time seeing a massive increase in jobs and job interest around AI. Job views with jobs that have got AI (in the skills set) have increased by 11 per cent and job applications (for posts with AI) have increased by 16 per cent in Australia.”

The figures are from LinkedIn’s recent Future of Work report based mainly on data from its one billion members, more than 67 million companies and other data sources on the platform.

Tindale says there has been a big increase in the demand for AI literacy in areas such as professional services, consulting, administrative and support services, as well as well as manufacturing, wholesale and retail industries – all of which were recruiting for skills around AI.

There has also been an 18 per cent increase in AI-related courses on LinkedIn in the past year. Tindale says while there has been a 25 per cent change in Australia since 2015 in the skills required at work, this was likely to be much higher – about 65 per cent – by 2030.

“Skills are constantly evolving and changing, and the requirements for skills within all roles have changed dramatically,” he says. “It is a transformation and what we actually do within our roles will definitely change; it will disrupt but it will also provide opportunities.”

LinkedIn’s Executive Confidence Index reveals about 74 per cent of global executives said the number one benefit they see with AI is the reduction of repetitive, very boring, rote work. And the second benefit is the increase in productivity from giving people more time for creativity and communication.

Tindale says the transformation from AI is just starting: “About 55 per cent of jobs will be disrupted or augmented, but I’m very optimistic. AI has the power to really improve productivity, to reduce our reliance on having to do more menial administrative, lower-value tasks within our work and free us up to concentrate much more on people skills.”

The Future of Work report also found that in Australia, Gen Z workers are two times more interested in acquiring AI skills than are baby boomers, and Gen Z in Australia are 1.2 times more likely than Gen X to want to learn AI skills.

The report says: “Gen Z is the generation most likely to see their jobs disrupted by AI. This is likely because many of the skills that can be automated by generative AI technologies – administrative tasks like note-taking, summarising meetings, scheduling and research – are often tasks that fall to professionals who are in the earlier stages of their careers.

“Some 54 per cent of Gen Z will have their jobs disrupted by AI, compared to 51 per cent of millennials, 50 per cent of Gen X and 45 per cent of boomers. More than half of women (55 per cent) and men (54 per cent) around the world will see their jobs disrupted or augmented by AI. The impact on women is slightly higher because historically female professionals are overly represented in occupations that rely more intensively on skills that can be replicated by AI technologies, like medical administrative assistant, office manager, and legal assistant.”

The Executive Confidence Index in June 2023 found 57 per cent of Australian executives agree “using generative AI will increase productivity”; 54 per cent say they are planning to increase their use of AI at their organisation in the next year; and 48 per cent say using generative AI will help unlock more growth/revenue opportunities in the next year.

But there’s strong support for so-called soft skills such as communication: in Australia, 94 per cent of executives agree soft skills are more important than ever; and 74 per cent say soft skills are more valuable to their organisation than AI skills.

Young Australian professionals led by millennials and Gen Z (36 per cent) show the most interest in learning AI skills compared to respondents overall (28 per cent). Almost half (48 per cent) of Australian baby boomer workers and 38 per cent of Gen X workers are not interested in learning any digital skills this year.

Generative AI is at the forefront of this transformation, the report says: “Over the coming years, AI is also going to change the very definition of work.

“In this dynamic environment, learning will become increasingly flexible and accessible. And in many ways, the future of work is becoming intertwined with the future of learning. Companies will do more and more to empower employees to acquire new skills and certifications while on the job, enhancing their value in the workforce.

“Those who will be the most successful in jobs in the age of AI are going to be the agile ones who embrace growth as a virtuous cycle: your growth, through learning and development, fuels company growth, while company growth, through innovations in business strategies and cross-functional collaboration, fuels your growth.”