Automation remains a hot topic among companies regarding their workforce, particularly as they look to reduce costs in the wake of falling demand. Not just regular automation but “hyperautomation” is now all the rage as companies look to automate multiple tasks within a more complex process using AI and machine learning. As most companies look for the opportunity to automate and scale back workforce costs, workers continue to fear their replacement at the hands of robots and AI.
A study by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in the UK shows which roles are most at risk of automation and suggests a mixed impact, with automation as likely to create jobs as it is to replace them. Among the most susceptible occupations, made up of mostly hospitality and elementary jobs, almost all have declined over the past five years, suggesting manual and repetitive tasks are, in fact, more likely to be replaced.
On the other hand, IT occupations, which are far less likely to be replaced, have grown in large numbers over the same period. Since 2017, according to AGS analysis using the Lightcast platform, the number of IT job postings in the US, Canada and UK citing “automation” as a required skill has grown by over 60%; for the rest of world that number is even greater at 80%, making the argument that automation is helping to create additional highly skilled roles in the workforce.
