Episode 54
Adapting to AI: Navigating Job Loss in Tech and Beyond
Summary:
Dr. Jim discusses a disturbing trend in the tech and white-collar sectors driven by AI advancements. Highlighting insights from the Pragmatic Engineer and Federal Reserve data, he notes a 70% decline in software jobs, particularly affecting mid-level positions. Dr. Jim explains how AI impacts job structures, predicting similar changes in marketing, sales, and partnership roles. He advises professionals to diversify their skills across the revenue cycle to stay relevant and irreplaceable. Tune in to explore strategies for thriving in an AI-dominated work landscape.
Chapters:
| 0:00 | Introduction of Trends in Tech Sector |
| 0:36 | Federal Reserve Data on Software Jobs |
| 1:12 | Disappearance of Middle-Tier Software Jobs |
| 1:44 | Role of AI in Job Market Changes |
| 2:22 | Structure of Future Software Teams |
| 2:50 | Impact on Revenue and Sales Roles |
| 3:24 | Evolution of Marketing and Partnerships |
| 3:47 | Necessity for Versatile Skill Sets |
| 4:15 | Broader Skill Sets in Revenue Roles |
| 5:04 | Conclusion: Embracing Versatility and Broad Skills |
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Music Credit: Good_B_Music
Article: https://blog.pragmaticengineer.com/software-engineer-jobs-five-year-low/
Mentioned in this episode:
Left in Exile Intro
Left in Exile Intro
Transcript
We're seeing a pretty disturbing trend happening in the tech sector and specifically software development that's going to have some widespread negative impact on white collar work in the near future.
That's what I'm picking up from an article that I recently read in the pragmatic engineer. And I'll link that in the notes and the comments so you can take a look at it. J. T. O'Donnell has also commented on this, and there's a pretty strong case that there's going to be some pretty significant negative impact for white collar workers all around the U.
S. and across the globe as well.
ose jobs will no longer come [:And when you look at the trend line, what you'll notice is that software development and engineering jobs hit their peak at the height of the pandemic. And it's been a steady decline since then. And in. 18 months in a period of 18 months, we've seen all of those jobs disappear.
It's not just in the U S that's that we're seeing this, we're seeing this across the globe where there's been a general decline in the number of software engineering jobs. And we're seeing those jobs disappear in one specific tier. And that's the middle tier of the workforce, the senior developers and senior engineer crowd and mid level engineers are being wiped out.
nce of AI is going to mean a [:It's going to mean one that when you look at the distribution of talent across I. T. teams, you're going to see low level. Entry level developer roles that do the blocking and tackling and then high level architect level positions that are going to be present in the world of work. And it's that whole middle tier that's going to be wiped out due to AI getting a stronger and stronger foothold in the world of work.
We know from a job trend perspective, generally speaking, trends start in the tech sector and then spread through the rest of the white collar world. So for those of us who are in the revenue side of a business, what does that mean for us? What does that mean for those who are in marketing and sales and partnerships?
What can this tell us about what we are going to encounter in these spaces?
we can assume is that AI as [:Or even even entry level and middle tier roles start disappearing.
And we're already seeing some of the low end roles within the sales function start to disappear. It was already happening through outsourced SDR teams. You're going to see more of that go the route of AI and eliminate that entire bottom tier.
Of the entry level revenue workforce. You're going to see that in marketing and you're going to see that in partnerships as well. And that's going to continue working upstream towards the middle tier of the account executive roles and marketing manager roles too, as AI becomes more and more effective.
t likely means, I believe is [:No longer are you going to have the. People who are only focused on down funnel activity. You're going to see professionals in that revenue space need to be proficient or demonstrate proficiency in marketing, in sales and in partnerships all across the full life cycle of a buyer. I believe, the quicker that revenue professionals build.
Their skills across all of those aspects of the revenue cycle and align it with the buyer journey, the better off you're going to be .
The goal going forward is to make yourself irreplaceable, make yourself the type of professional who can't be replaced by a I because you bring a unique set of skills to the table, and that's going to be the pathway for those in software engineering to be indispensable.
pathway for those of us who [:The bottom line is that for anybody that is in a white collar job, you need to start thinking about how can you make yourself more versatile and how can you make yourself much more broad based in terms of the things that you are capable of bringing into the table? That's going to be the key to surviving what is going to be coming over the next Several months and years as AI becomes more and more present in the world of work.
