We hear a lot of talk about how dramatic advances in technology will disrupt how we work in the future in very fundamental ways. The truth is: the future of work is now.

Robots, artificial intelligence, and automation are already transforming society and business. The workforce continues to shift further toward knowledge-based, highly-skilled jobs and away from industrial jobs.

As businesses adopt more automation and AI technologies, the nature of most jobs — the skills, tasks, and knowledge needed to perform them successfully — will continue to change. Some jobs will be eliminated altogether. And new jobs that we have not even yet conceived of will be created.

This is Where the Futures of Work and Education Intersect

We’re already seeing employers unable to fill millions of open positions because they can’t find enough workers with the knowledge and skills needed to get the job done. As the volume of unfilled jobs demonstrates, our education system and workforce training programs clearly aren’t keeping pace with the accelerated demand for tech-savvy workers.

Education must be an active part of solving this skilled worker shortage.

What is the future of education? How is it evolving to prepare students for the future of work?

We’re going to be talking about all these issues at SXSW EDU 2020 in Austin in March.

We’ll be conducting taped interviews at the conference for our WorkingNation Overheard series of videos and articles.

WorkingNation is asking questions about the future of work and the future of education, including:

• Is the education system arming students with the skills they need for a successful career in high-demand industries?
• Is higher education changing fast enough to keep up with the career needs of this generation?
• How can educators work with the business community to create a pipeline of workers needed in the workplace today?
• Will education prepare students to be lifelong learners?
• What will higher education look like in the next decade?
• Should four-year schools be more like two-year schools?
• Does everyone need to go to college to get a good job?
• Is college providing a good return on investment for students and parents?
• Which innovative programs, schools, and education leaders are getting real results?
• How is YOUR program or school evolving to fit the needs of students and society today and in the future?

We’re scheduling interviews. If you’re attending the conference, and want to talk to us, email us, let us know who you are, and share your thoughts on these important questions at [email protected]. We may ask you to share those thoughts on camera.

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