If America’s future workforce is going to be “more flexible, more freelance, more collaborative and far less secure,” as Time magazine prophesizes in its May 13, 2009 issue, it indicates that the American business paradigm as we know it is going to go through some major upheavals in the coming decade or two. Time suggests that American business is teetering on the cusp of major change. Powerful social forces have pushed us toward this edge, and the current economic disaster appears ready to tip us over and send us careening in new directions.
What’s driving the coming changes?
- The Baby Boomer generation has been an unstoppable force since its inception. Sheer numbers have changed the focus of society each time Boomers have entered a new life phase. Now poised to enter retirement, America’s most populous demographic will again shift the country’s emphasis, this time to health care and aging issues. By 2030, one-fifth of American citizens will be over the age of 65, with the greatest growth in the over 85 demographic. As they have from the beginning, Boomers will drive the country’s business, social and political agendas. Expect growth in health care, pharmaceuticals, medical aids and equipment, security and alert services, home care, transportation and mobility, shop-at-home opportunities and travel. But don’t count Boomers down and out yet. The last of the Boomers won’t retire for another 20 years and many plan to and will be able to work into their 80s. With far fewer workers moving up to replace them, American business owners need to prepare for a grayer workforce.
- The new generation of managers entering the business world seems to have been plugged in since birth. Quick to embrace new technology, they’re more comfortable in front of a computer checking their email and Facebook accounts or texting and twittering than they are communicating face-to-face. Expect business communication and social interaction to change to reflect the fast-paced, multi-tasking, solitary preferences of the tech-savvy earbud generation. This is the generation that will take integrated technology to new levels not yet even imagined. Business has already begun to lose its brick and mortar walls as more people work remotely. Expect the next generation to blow them away. The days of the cubicle are numbered!
More on Monday