Looking into the Antecedents of the Transformation of IT Jobs. A Country-based Perspective
Abstract
Technology is changing at an exponential rate. As a result, it does have a disruptive life on society and our lives. It changes our personal lives, socialization, and interaction with people and businesses. Technology has changed and does continue to change the way we work. Along with the four industrial revolutions, many jobs have disappeared, more jobs have been created, and almost every job was transformed by automation. The 4th industrial revolution leading to Industry 4.0 is powered by artificial intelligence, robotics, Internet of things. The Information Technology (IT) industry and IT professionals primarily drive this transformation. While information technology specialists contribute with the technology they build to change their world, technology is transforming the profession responsible for this transformation. The paper looks at how digital transformation impacts the transformation of IT jobs, how government policies and managerial strategies impact the transformation of IT jobs and how employees and organizations are responding with investment in skills development. The research relies on a questionnaire-based survey with 132 Romanian IT professionals, students and computer science professors representing small and large organizations. Seven out of the nine hypotheses were supported by the data, confirming that digital transformation impacts the transformation of jobs, particularly IT jobs, and that this drives the need to build new technical and soft skills.References
Acenture. (2017). Inclusion in the digital economy. Accenture, 8–28. https://www.accenture.com/_acnmedia/pdf-63/accenture-new-skills-now-inclusion-in-the-digital.pdf
ANIS. (2019a). ANIS Studiu. ANIS. https://anis.ro/resurse/#
ANIS. (2019b). Software and IT Services in Romania. ANIS. https://anis.ro/resurse/
ANIS. (2022). ANIS Studiu privind impactul industriei SW&IT. https://anis.ro/wp-content/uploads/ANIS_RB_Studiu-privind-impactul-industriei-SWIT_FINAL.pdf
Arntz, M., Gregory, T., & Zierahn, U. (2016). The Risk of Automation for Jobs in OECD Countries: A Comparative Analysis Working Papers No. 189 The Risk of Automation for Jobs in OECD Countries a Comparative Analyses. OECD Social, Employment, and Migration Working Papers, May 8–9. https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/social-issues-migration-health/the-risk-of-automation-for-jobs-in-oecd-countries_5jlz9h56dvq7-en
Ashworth, R., & Barrows, R. (2018). Disruptive innovations VI (August Issue). https://www.citivelocity.com/citigps/disruptive-innovations-vi/
Bejinaru, R. (2013). Impact of Digitalization on Education in the Knowledge Economy. Management Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy, 7(3), 367–380. https://doi.org/10.25019/mdke/7.3.06
Bharati, P., Zhang, W., & Chaudhury, A. (2015). Better knowledge with social media? Exploring the roles of social capital and organizational knowledge management. Journal of Knowledge Management, 19(3), 456–475. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-11-2014-0467/FULL/XML
Bodrožić, Z., & Adler, P. S. (2018). The Evolution of Management Models: A Neo-Schumpeterian Theory. Administrative Science Quarterly, 63(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/0001839217704811
Bughin, J., Hazan, E., Lund, S., & Dahlstrom, P. (2018). Skill Shift: Automation and the Future of the Workforce. McKinsey & Company, May 8–14. https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/skill-shift-automation-and-the-future-of-the-workforce
Cassard, A., & Hamel, J. (2018). Exponential Growth of Technology and the Impact on Economic Jobs and Teaching. The Journal of Applied Business and Economics, 20(2), 76-81.
Cohen, J. (1977). Statistical power for the behaviour sciences. Laurence Erlbaum and Associates. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/book/9780121790608
Diamantopoulos, A., & Siguaw, J. A. (2006). Formative Versus Reflective Indicators in Organizational Measure Development: A Comparison and Empirical Illustration. British Journal of Management, 17(4), 263–282. https://doi.org/10.1111/J.1467-8551.2006.00500.X
European Commission. (2020). European skills agenda. Skills for jobs. July 2–3, 2020. https://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1223&langId=en
Eurostat. (2019). Do young people in the EU have digital skills? https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news
Eurostat. (2020). Adults participation in lifelong learning. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/-/DDN-20190517-1
Ferrucci, D., Levas, A., Bagchi, S., Gondek, D., & Mueller, E. T. (2013). Watson: Beyond jeopardy! Artificial Intelligence, 199-200(1), 93–105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.artint.2012.06.009
Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating Structural Equation Models with Unobservable Variables and Measurement Error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39-50. https://doi.org/10.2307/3151312
Frey, C. B., Buckland, R., Mcdonald, G., Garlick, R., Coombs, A., Lai, A., Mayo, R., Frey, C. B., Buckland, R., Mcdonald, G., Garlick, R., Coombs, A., Lai, A., & Mayo, R. (1990). Technology at Work. Manufacturing Engineer, 69(2), 8-10. https://doi.org/10.1049/me:19900029
Frey, C. B., Garlick, R., Badoy, E., Buiter, W., Chua, J., Hagerty, S., Richards, A., Tao, W., Yu, K., Daugherty, P., Furr, N., Channell, J., Fordham, T., Benedikt, F., Rob, G., Badoy, E., Willem, B., Chua, J., Sean, H., … Fordham, T. (2019). Technology at Work v4.0, pp. 37–38. https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/publications/technology-at-work-4/
Frey, C. B., & Osborne, M. A. (2017). The future of employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation? Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 114, 254–280. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2016.08.019
Gibney, B. Y. E. (2016). Google masters Go. Science, 8–9. https://www.nature.com/articles/529445a.pdf?origin=ppub
Grigoraș, V., Tănase, A., & Leonte, A. (2016). Studiu al evoluțiilor sectorului IT & C în România. 1–16. https://www.bnr.ro/DocumentInformation.aspx?idInfoClass= 8161&idDocument=26052&directLink=1
Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2022). A primer on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Sage.
Hair, J. F., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2014). From the Special Issue Guest Editors. Https://Doi.Org/10.1080/10696679.2011.11046435, 19(2), 135–137. https://doi.org/10.1080/10696679.2011.11046435
Harari, N. (2015). Homo Deus. Harvill Secker. https://www.ynharari.com/book/homo-deus/
Harry H. Harman. (1976). Modern Factor Analysis (3rd ed. revised). University of Chicago Press.
Henseler, J., Dijkstra, T. K., Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., Diamantopoulos, A., Straub, D. W., Ketchen, D. J., Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., & Calantone, R. J. (2014). Common Beliefs and Reality About PLS: Comments on Rönkkö and Evermann. Organizational Research Methods, 17(2), 182–209. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428114526928
Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sinkovics, R. R. (2009). The use of partial least squares path modeling in international marketing. Advances in International Marketing, 20, 277–319. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1474-7979(2009)0000020014/FULL/XML
Hess, T., Benlian, A., Matt, C., & Wiesböck, F. (2016). Options for formulating a digital transformation strategy. MIS Quarterly Executive, 15(2), 123–139. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429286797-7
Hines, A. (2019). Getting ready for a post-work future. Foresight and STI Governance, 13(1), 19–30. https://doi.org/10.17323/2500-2597.2019.1.19.30
IMF. (2018). Technology and the Future of Work. In International Monetary Fund. https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2018/09/28/Technology-and-the-Future-of-Work-46203
International Organisation of Employers. (2020). IOE Centenary Global Summit on the Future of Work. February 3–9, 2020.
Ionel, D., & Alexandru-Gabriel, B. (2019). New Trends in Sustainable Business and Consumption Romanian Food Waste Analyses. https://www.researchgate.net
Kamble, S. S., Gunasekaran, A., & Gawankar, S. A. (2018). Sustainable Industry 4.0 framework: A systematic literature review identifying the current trends and future perspectives. Process Safety and Environmental Protection, 117, 408–425. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psep.2018.05.009
Khalid, K., Hilman, H., & Kumar, D. (2012). Get along with quantitative research process. International Journal of Research in Management, 2(2), 15-29.
Kurzweil, R. (2006). The singularity is near: when humans transcend biology. Viking.
Little, M. J. (2004). Back to school What Adults Without Degrees Say About Pursuing Additional Education and Training. Strada, 69(1), 60–65. https://www.stradaeducation.org/report/back-to-school/
Madsen, D. (2019). The Emergence and Rise of Industry 4.0 Viewed through the Lens of Management Fashion Theory. Administrative Sciences, 9(3), 71. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci9030071
Manelici, I., & Pantea, S. (2019a). Industrial Policy at Work: Evidence from Romania’s Income Tax Break for Workers in IT. SSRN Electronic Journal, May 2019. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3308591
Manelici, I., & Pantea, S. (2019b). Industrial Policy at Work: Evidence from Romania’s Income Tax Break for Workers in IT. SSRN Electronic Journal, January 2019, 19–26. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3308591
Manyika, J. (2017). What is the future of work? https://www.mckinsey.com
Manyika, J., Chui, M., & Bughin, J. (2013). Disruptive technologies: Advances that will transform life, business, and the global economy. McKinsey Global. http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/business_technology/disruptive_technologies%5Cnhttp://www.chrysalixevc.com/pdfs/mckinsey_may2013.pdf
Manyika, James., Lund, S., Chui, M., Bughin, J., Woetzel, J., Batra, P., & Ko, R. (2017). Jobs lost, jobs gained: Workforce transitions in a time of automation. McKinsey Global Institute. https://www.mckinsey.com
Martin, E. (2004). Survey Questionnaire Construction. Encyclopedia of Social Measurement, 723–732. https://doi.org/10.1016/B0-12-369398-5/00433-3
McKenna, B. (1998). Beyond The Hype Separating ambition from reality in Industry 4.0. Watson: Beyond Jeopardy! Artificial Intelligence, 22(3), 217–219. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb024669
Moore, G. E. (2009). Cramming more components onto integrated circuits, Reprinted from Electronics, volume 38, number 8, April 19, 1965, pp.114 ff. IEEE Solid-State Circuits Society Newsletter, 11(3), 33–35. https://doi.org/10.1109/n-ssc.2006.4785860
Nahavandi, S. (2019). Industry 5.0-a human-centric solution. Sustainability, 11(16), 4. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11164371
Nania, J., Bonella, H., Restuccia, D., & Taska, B. (2019a). New Skills Now. Inclusion in the Digital Economy. Accenture. https://www.accenture.com/_acnmedia/pdf-63/accenture-new-skills-now-inclusion-in-the-digital.pdf
Nania, J., Bonella, H., Restuccia, D., & Taska, B. (2019b). No Longer Optional: Employer Demand for Digital Skills. Accenture. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/current-and-future-demand-for-digital-skills-in-the-workplace
Nathan, A. J., & Scobell, A. (2012). A Short History of AI How China sees America. Foreign Affairs, 91(5), 1689–1699. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781107415324.004
Nunnally, J. C., & Bernstein, I. H. (1994). Psychometric theory (3rd ed.). McGraw-Hill.
OECD. (2019). OECD Skills Outlook 2019 Thriving in a Digital World. https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/oecd-skills-outlook-2019/summary/english_e98f82d2-en
OECD. (2020). Tourism Policy Responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19). https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/policy-responses/tourism-policy-responses-to-the-coronavirus-covid-19-6466aa20/
Oztemel, E., & Gursev, S. (2018). Literature review of Industry 4.0 and related technologies. Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, 31(1), 127–182. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10845-018-1433-8
Petcana, A. M. (2019). PwC Report: Over the next ten year, 600 000 jobs in Romania, affected by digital transformation. July Issue, PwC.
Piccarozzi, M., Aquilani, B., & Gatti, C. (2018). Industry 4.0 in management studies: A systematic literature review. Sustainability, 10(10), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10103821
Reischauer, G. (2018). Industry 4.0 as policy-driven discourse to institutionalize innovation systems in manufacturing. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 132, 26-33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2018.02.012
Roblek, V., Meško, M., & Krapež, A. (2016). A Complex View of Industry 4.0. SAGE Open, 6(2), 2-4. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244016653987
Sanandaji, N. (2020). The Geography of Europe’ s Brain Business Jobs: 2020 Index. European Centre for Entrepreneurship and Policy Reform, 79–81. https://www.ecepr.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Geography_of_Brain_-Business_Jobs_2021_Final_April.pdf
Schwab, K. (2018). Insight Report: The Future of Jobs Report. World Economic Forum. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891242417690604
Schwab, K., Zahini, S., Zahidi, S., Ratcheva, V., Hingel, G., Brown, S., Schwab, K., & Zahini, S. (2020). The Future of Jobs Report. WEF. https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2020
Seroz, M. (2019). AI Future of Work. European Commission. https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/096526d7-17d8-11ea-8c1f-01aa75ed71a1
Singlehurst, T., Pejaver, N., Li, M., Gong, B. D., Pemberton, M., Singlehurst, T., Pejaver, N., Li, M., & Gong, B. D. (2020). Education: Fast Forward to the Future. https://www.citivelocity.com/citigps/education-fast-forward
Soto-Acosta, P., Cismaru, D. M., Vătămănescu, E. M., & Ciochină, R. S. (2016). Sustainable entrepreneurship in SMEs: A business performance perspective. Sustainability, 8(4), 3–12. https://doi.org/10.3390/su8040342
Stein, C. M., Morris, N. J., Hall, N. B., & Nock, N. L. (2017). Structural equation modeling. Methods in Molecular Biology, 1666, 661–664. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-7274-6_28
Taherdoost, H. (2020). Determining Sample Size; How to Calculate Survey. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3224205
Theis, T. N., & Philip Wong, H. S. (2017). The End of Moore’s Law: A New Beginning for Information Technology. Computing in Science and Engineering, 19(2), 41–50. https://doi.org/10.1109/MCSE.2017.29
Thomas, F., & Mourad, Z. (2020). Technology for the People? Humanity as a Compass for the Digital Transformation. Wirtschaftsdienst, 100, 4-11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10273-020-2609-3
Thompson, R., Higgins, C., & Barclay, D. W. (1995). The partial least squares approach to causal modeling: Personal computer adoption and use as an illustration. Technology Studies, 2(2), 285-309.
Thornton, J., & Riviera, D. (2019). Expert insights about employment in 2030. https://brookfieldinstitute.ca/signs-of-the-times-expert-insights-about-employment-in-2030/
Tytler, R., Bridgstock, R., White, P., Mather, D., McCandless, T., & Grant-Iramu, M. (2019). 100 Jobs of The Future. https://100jobsofthefuture.com/
van Dorsser, C., Walker, W. E., Taneja, P., & Marchau, V. A. W. J. (2018). Improving the link between the futures field and policymaking. Futures, 104, 75–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2018.05.004
Volini, E., & Schwartz, J. (2020). Returning to work in the future of work. Deloitte. https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/focus/human-capital-trends/2020/covid-19-and-the-future-of-work.html
Wilkinson, A., & Barry, M. (2020). The future of the future of work. Edward Elgar Publishing.
World Economic Forum (WEF). (2013). The Future of Jobs Employment, Skills and Workforce Strategy for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. World Futures Review, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/1946756712473437
Wright, M. J. (2018). The Changing Nature of Work. American Journal of Public Health, 108(3), 315–316. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2017.304283
Yi, M. Y., & Davis, F. D. (2003). Developing and validating an observational learning model of computer software training and skill acquisition. Information Systems Research, 14(2), 146–169. https://doi.org/10.1287/ISRE.14.2.146.16016
Zahidi, S., Ratcheva, V., Hingel, G., Brown, S., Schwab, K., & Zahini, S. (2020). The Future of Jobs Report. WEF. https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2020
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Ion MOLDOVEANU
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs license, the users are free to share (copy, distribute and transmit the contribution) with the condition to attribute the contribution in the manner specified by the author or licensor. They may not alter, transform, or build upon this work.
