5G is the poster technology of the world of communication. It is supposed to be 100 times faster than its predecessor. A technology that will download movies in seconds, bring virtual reality closer to reality and nurture millions of smart devices.
Still, I think it would be pretty disappointing if 5G didn’t leave a much bigger impact than that. It has the potential to be the leitmotif of the connected world of the future.
5G is planned to introduce massive changes to all industries. Needless to say, it would also have a big impact on the job landscape. A study indicates that 5G will support 22.8 million jobs, a fairly significant number. In addition, increased automation, accessibility, and speed will increase efficiency, richer collaborations, and real-time decision making.
5G will provide more jobs in telecommunications than its predecessors
We eliminate the assumption that 5G will kill jobs. I think it will create more jobs than any of its predecessors. Especially in India, which currently has high-end capabilities to create a 5G ecosystem for the world.
The recent increase of more than 12 billion euros in the government’s production-linked incentive plan (PLI) will go a long way in creating hundreds of thousands of job opportunities in manufacturing, including telecommunications manufacturing.
In addition, the large deployment of 5G networks will need millions of skilled and semi-skilled professionals across the country. This will lead to the introduction of a broad set of roles. And that’s just scratching the surface.
The adoption of 5G will have an incredible effect on all industries that will require people of all verticals.
Skill will be the way forward
5G is no faster than 4G. It has a high-powered, ubiquitous, and economical computer layer on top of the connectivity layer. Therefore, 5G will require a new open source, virtualized, and disaggregated network architecture.
To build and maintain this architecture, the telecommunications sector will require its engineers, developers, researchers, architects, marketing professionals and even leaders.
Skills in domains such as application platforms, cloud, database intelligence, cybersecurity, programming, and systems software will be more crucial than before. Internal skills programs will also need to focus heavily on 5G and its use cases.
An example of this would be STL’s 5G training program that aims to train a lakh woman in 5G for free. We will also see an increase in demand for professionals with heterogeneous skill sets traversing the hardware and software layers of 5G networks.
Diversity and inclusion will find new meaning
Imagine network engineers working remotely from Akola (Maharashtra) and Udaipur (Rajasthan) using holograms, augmented reality, and algorithmic tools to design a network for Hyderabad. This can happen in an era of 5G.
By turning technology into the common denominator, 5G has the potential to pave the way for diversity and inclusion like never before. Collaboration tools will be richer than ever thanks to the ubiquitous speed and connectivity that 5G offers.
One-third of India’s workforce is already expected to operate remotely by 2022. I expect that number to increase once 5G expands in the country. Companies will be able to extract the best talent from all parts of the country, expanding their talent offering.
The country’s rural workforce will also find more employment as 5G transcends the boundaries. 5G will further open the doors for women, people of different ethnicities and people with special abilities / disabilities to find their dream jobs without leaving their homes.
Companies will be able to successfully integrate talent regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or PIN codes into their current employee culture.
New ways of working will emerge
As 5G will pave the way for a more flexible workplace, companies will also adapt policies to the new way of working. Ubiquitous connectivity and high speeds will supplement business operations, leading to higher productivity and smarter ways of working.
We will find more flexible shutdown policies, benefit packages (e.g., capacity improvement allocation), and work schedules aligned with the workplace and job demands. More emphasis will be placed on facilitating employee collaboration and engagement through sophisticated technological tools.
Innovation and agility will play an even more important role for a business. It will include agile business practices and carry out new initiatives in line with the environment and customer experiences. A continuous process of optimization, adjustment and openness to change will be followed.
The time is right for jobs to prepare for 5G
With 5G getting closer to becoming a reality, it’s the right time for jobs to get ready for it. We need a long-term strategy not only to prepare for 5G, but to take advantage of it to increase productivity and create benefits for early adopters.
This can be done in the following ways:
- Check your computer systems to cope with the increase in data and leverage it for real-time decision making
- Strengthen the safety posture of your company to deal with threats that would entail 5G
- Train your employees about 5G so they can adapt and adopt the technology quickly
5G is an advantage for the telecommunications sector. With the right policies and staffing, the telecommunications sector will be able to overcome this wave and allow huge socio-economic benefits for the country.
(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.)