Data Scientist: The Sexiest Job of the 21st Century

Data scientist, according to a 2012 Harvard Business Review is the sexiest job of the 21st century, nonetheless the IT industry expecting huge shortages of skilled workers.

It is estimate that about 47 percent of total US employment is at risk from computerisation. Nearly 100 occupations, covering a wide range of skills from manual to mental, showed a 95 percent or higher probability of computerisation.
The probability of computerisation, or automation more generally, is not the only factor that determines whether jobs will be lost or not. The availability and cost of skilled labor, government regulations and social factors all play a role. One fact is indisputable, however: Automated solutions, whether hardware or software (or a combination of both), are getting cheaper, faster and more versatile at an ever-increasing rate.

In a market economy, where cost of production, including labor, is a major component of competition, ever cheaper and better automation will replace labor wherever possible. Extrapolate vehicle autonomy to buses, trucks, etc. and you see the potential to decimate the near 4 million driver jobs in the US labor market of 135 million. Add another 4 million retail cashiers, 4 million fast food counter workers, 8 million financial, information and record clerks, and the potential impacts become clear.
Economists, for the most part, are dismissive of the so-called Luddites. Past experience, they say, shows that in all prior technological revolutions, displaced workers re-skilled and took up jobs that had not existed previously. These economists seem immune to the reality that when today’s technologies create new jobs, they do so in far smaller numbers than the ones displaced.

Even technologists see only the benign outcomes. Technology, they say, has consistently improved living standards, health and longevity everywhere it has been introduced. True though this may be, there is one condition: The general public must be able to afford the good life on offer.

Competition, of course, decreases the cost of goods by reducing production costs through improved technology and the reduced labor costs it allows. So far, this impact on labor has usually been mitigated by the movement of displaced workers to other sectors of the economy and their continued earnings. The shift to services jobs in the Western world is just the latest example of this shift.

Today’s technological advances affect every sector of the economy. Where, for example, do the 20 million workers mentioned above move when their jobs are automated? They take lower paid jobs if available or they join the ranks of the unemployed. At a certain point, the rate of decrease in purchasing power within the economy will drop below the rate of decrease in the cost of goods. The economic and social consequences of this crossover have been repeatedly demonstrated in the Rust Belt cities of the US Extrapolated to the entire Western economy, the outcome could be catastrophic.

Emerging economies fare little better. The surge of manufacturing jobs are quickly automated as living standards rise and workers demand higher wages, as has been seen already in China. Increasingly, the transportation and logistics costs of shipping products from offshored jobs become less attractive than highly automated production onshore. Some Third World countries may not even make it to the manufacturing plateau.

With the cost of production of goods continuing to decrease as ever more jobs are automated, breaking the link between work and spending power seems to be the obvious, and perhaps only, solution. Automation continues to increase overall economic wealth. The issue that is coming to the fore is that it is inequitably distributed, with far greater rewards to capital rather than labor.

Whatever the balance of the outcome, it’s pretty clear that jobs will never be the same again for the majority of people. A benign conclusion would be that people would work at jobs in which they were interested rather than only for the money. Others might devote themselves to continuous education, spiritual growth or hedonism; all would be equally valued in a new golden age of leisure and contentment. 

Unfortunately, the path to this utopia may well be strewn with thorns and barricaded with barbed wire, as the rich and established order clings to the past model of the market economy. Indeed, data scientist may well continue to be the sexiest job of the 21st century and it will certainly be among the last…

Techcrunch

« UK Police 'Skim the Surface' of Cybercrime
Espionage Lessons from the OPM Hack »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

Syxsense

Syxsense

Syxsense brings together endpoint management and security for greater efficiency and collaboration between IT management and security teams.

North Infosec Testing (North IT)

North Infosec Testing (North IT)

North IT (North Infosec Testing) are an award-winning provider of web, software, and application penetration testing.

IT Governance

IT Governance

IT Governance is a leading global provider of information security solutions. Download our free guide and find out how ISO 27001 can help protect your organisation's information.

Jooble

Jooble

Jooble is a job search aggregator operating in 71 countries worldwide. We simplify the job search process by displaying active job ads from major job boards and career sites across the internet.

CSI Consulting Services

CSI Consulting Services

Get Advice From The Experts: * Training * Penetration Testing * Data Governance * GDPR Compliance. Connecting you to the best in the business.

Logpoint

Logpoint

Logpoint is a creator of innovative security platforms to empower security teams in accelerating threat detection, investigation and response with a consolidated tech stack.

Magic Software Enterprises

Magic Software Enterprises

Magic provide Mobile Device Management (MDM) for Secure Enterprise Mobility. Magic MDM overcomes the challenges of mobile device management security by protecting all of your devices, data and content

NetDiligence

NetDiligence

NetDiligence is a privately-held cyber risk assessment and data breach services company.

NSIT

NSIT

NSIT SAS is a consulting, advisory and service provider in IT systems. Solution areas include networking & infrastructure, IT management & administration, and cyber security.

Quokka

Quokka

Quokka (formerly Kryptowire) is the source for mobile security and privacy solutions, staying steps ahead of the threat and delivering peace of mind.

Cyber Police of Ukraine

Cyber Police of Ukraine

Cyber Police of Ukraine is a law enforcement agency within the the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine dedicated to combating cyber crime.

689cloud

689cloud

689Cloud is a cloud content collaboration platform that allows users to protect, track, and control files AFTER they have been shared.

MTI

MTI

MTI is a solutions and service provider, specialising in data & cyber security, datacentre modernisation, modern workplace, IT managed services and IT transformation services.

Cyber Management Alliance

Cyber Management Alliance

Cyber Management Alliance is closing the divide in cyberspace by bringing together the best qualities of thought leadership and operational mastery of cyber security management.

Verica

Verica

Verica uses chaos engineering to make systems more secure and less vulnerable to costly incidents.

CybersCool Defcon

CybersCool Defcon

CybersCool is committed to educate and train, re-skill and up-skill the current workforce of various industries and businesses in the knowledge and know-how of cybersecurity.

J.S. Held

J.S. Held

J.S. Held is a global consulting firm providing technical, scientific, and financial expertise across all assets and value at risk.

Firesand

Firesand

Based in Milton Keynes, Firesand Ltd provides penetration testing services to improve your cyber security and protect your company against hackers.

Sev1Tech

Sev1Tech

Sev1Tech is a leading provider of IT modernization, cloud, cybersecurity, engineering, fielding, training, and program support services.

TeamT5

TeamT5

TeamT5 Inc. is a leading cybersecurity company dedicated to cyber threat research and solutions.

CyRiSo

CyRiSo

CyRiSo is a cyber security consulting company with a focus on 'as-a-service' services for the most pressing challenges of cyber security.