20 quotes about digital economy, talents and skills

It was the fourth industrial revolution, at the economic forum in Davos, Switzerland, Why were the big decision makers of the world speaking of the digital economy? Because it is modifying the world order, the creation of incredible wealth and bigger inequalities. It also announces socio-technological changes far more sudden than ever experienced before. Artificial intelligence, machine-learning, robotics, nanotechnology, 3D-printing, genetics and biotechnology open up huge opportunities and unknown thus far. Grab them and juice them require new skills. Here is a short tour based on the best quotes I’ve read on the subject. For French version of quotes, see this article.

« Across the countries covered by the Report, current trends could lead to a net employment impact of more than 5.1 million jobs lost to disruptive labour market changes over the period 2015–2020, with a total loss of 7.1 million jobs—two thirds of which are concentrated in routine white collar office functions, such as Office and Administrative roles—and a total gain of 2 million jobs, in Computer and Mathematical and Architecture and Engineering related fields ». The Future of Jobs Employment, Skills and Workforce Strategy for the Fourth Industrial Revolution – source

“There has never been a time of greater promise, or greater peril. […] We must develop a comprehensive and globally shared view of how technology is affecting our lives and reshaping our economic, social, cultural, and human environments.” Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum – source

“New developments in machine intelligence will make us far far smarter as a result, for everyone on the planet. It’s because our smart phones are basically supercomputers. […] Everyone gets smarter because of this technology… and the empowerment of people is the secret to technological progress.” Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman, Google – source

“All one needs is a computer, a network connection, and a bright spark of initiative and creativity to join the economy.” Don Tapscott, professor and author of Wikinomics and Digital Economy – source

“Any skilled engineer can take control remotely of any connected ‘thing’. Society has not yet realized the incredible scenarios this capability creates.” André Kudelski, Chairman and CEO of Kudelski Group – source

“True disruption changes an approach to make a product or service more accessible or more affordable.” Damien Tampling, Deloitte Tech – source

« In the new world, it is not the big fish which eats the small fish, it’s the fast fish wich eats the slow fish. » Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum – source

« Traditionally, what separated an average company from a great company had been technology. We’re in the middle of a transformation. Today, what differentiates an average company from a great company is talent. » Wade Burgess. VP Talent Solutions Linkedin – source

« Nevertheless, robots are still imperfect, and their capabilities are not yet sufficient to fully displace humans. Furthermore, and despite constant progress, the ROI for fully automated manufacturing is still unproven, raising doubts about the speed with which Industry 4.0 is gaining traction. But the revolution is most certainly under way. » Xavier Mesnard. Partner with A.T. Kearney – source

« The factory of the future will have only two employees: a man and a dog. The man will be there to feed the dog. The dog will be there to keep the man from touching the equipment. » Carl Bass Autodesk CEO – source

« Unless senior executives push this transformation, it won’t happen – it is a lost cause, » Didier Bonnet, Capgemini Consulting global practice leader digital transformation – source

« Set an incredibly high bar for talent and quality, and never ever compromise. It’s also important to be objective and make an unbiased hiring decision. I urge you, set a high standard and hold your clients to it. It’s better to grow slowly and have higher quality people. » Laszlo Bock Senior Vice President People Operations, Google – source

« I tell clients : brand or be branded. And if they aren’t branding, tell your C-Suite that they are saying one of three things 1). We have nothing interesting to say 2) We’ve got something to hide 3) We’re not technology savvy » J.T. O’Donnell CEO and Founder of Careeralism – source

« When we become hyperconnected with technology and disconnected from ourselves, we lose track of our wisdom sense of well-being and wonder. We need to change that. Create the cultures that accelerate that type of change. » Arianna Huffington, Chair, President and Editor in Chief HuffingtonPost – source

« The only way to understand new culture and behavior is to go native. Going native refers to the process of observing, learning and deepening the involvement of an anthropologist with their hosts and their hosts’ cutlures through long-term field-work and participation. » Brian Solis – Digital Analyst – source

« Today, because knowledge is available on every connected device, what you know matters far less than what you can do with what you know. The capacity to innovate – the availability to solve problems creatively or bring new possibilites to life – and skills like critical thinking, communication and collaboration are far more important than academic knowledge. » Dr. Tony Wagner, Expert In Residence at Harvard University’s new Innovation Lab – source

“We’ve been much more proactive in identifying capabilities and skills that we think our top leaders will need to compete in the new world. We spend an enormous amount of time as a team talking about people’s skill sets, how they have to evolve and what are the best roles for them to take on. And we tap people on the shoulder and say, it’s time to move on.” David I McKay, President and Chief Executive Officer of RBC, Canada – Source

« At Facebook, we try to be a strengths-based organization, which means we try to make jobs fit around people rather than make people fit around jobs. We focus on what people’s natural strengths are and spend our management time trying to find ways for them to use those strengths every day. » Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO and author – source

« More than ever, individuals will pursue careers with multiple employers rather than a job for life. The Haves, with sought after talent, are in a better bargaining position and able to manage their own careers. The Have Nots, those without in-demand skills, feel increasingly disposable and marginalized. Employers will have to work harder to drive engagement and productivity especially among the Rest of Us. Employers will need to shift mindsets and  provide more tools, support and opportunities so workers choose them as the workplace to upskill and stay relevant. » Jonas Prising, chairman and CEO Manpower – source

“Pick a problem, solve it in as cheap and quick a way as possible, set some sensible metrics and see if it works; if it doesn’t, then don’t worry because you haven’t spent much and you’ve probably learnt something quite valuable. Do it 10 times and you’ll wake up to find you’ve built the whole new system for a fraction of the cost.” Bob Barbour, Head of digital, Shelter – source