"There it is folks. WalMart is starting has joined this march to the future and will soon be followed by many more. Looking for a job at WalMart? Better have your skills updated. The future seems to have crept up on us overnight. Least wise, it seems that way."
The other day on the news, an employment expert was trying to prep the citizens (especially the ones looking for employment) what the job scene was going to look like in the future. Before you get too cozy and think he was talking about a future 30 years from now, I should tell you the future he was talking about starts in 2022 - about 2 1/2 years away. What he said was some information I had heard before, and then something with a new twist.
With as much good press as STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) has received, this expert said not to put too much emphasis on it. Huh? Oh, he said STEM was important, but not the golden fleece it once might have been. He said the key to success will not only be your education pedigree, but also how much you can learn at your current job. In particular, how much you can learn at your current job about emerging technologies. Bottom line - staying nimble and flexible will be the key to a good future.
He went on to then say the obvious - something we have heard now for the past few years. Many of the jobs which will exist in the near future do not exist right now, and we need to be trained and able to fill them. Then he hit the real shocker. The next few years could as soon as 2022. Again - that is right around the corner.
Case in point. In the business section of Sunday's paper, was an article about WalMart. How it is changing right now. We know that some change is happening, as recently our WalMart has more self checkout lanes than manual checkout lanes. Anyhow, WalMart is going to dive head first in the AI pool. AI? Yes, AI will have many applications in our brave new world. WalMart will be using one just one of them. And it will eliminate some lower skill jobs at WalMart and replace them with more tech savvy ones.
WalMart wants to have a series of cameras in the ceiling of each store. These cameras will be tied in with the store's central data processor. The cameras will be scanning each of the products for sale, see how many have been sold, how fast they sell, and the AI will kick in. It will take over the ordering of more product when needed. AI will take JIT (Just In Time) supply chain management to a whole new level. Oh, and look for more automation in resupplying those shelves when needed. Translation = if you are looking for a lower skilled job to have at WalMart, good luck with that one.
This would not be a post from the Bird if it did not contain a wee bit of politics in it. One more time - Hello! Governor Walz? Are you awake sir? This brave new world of how we need to educate our young people is happening right now - on your watch. You have to get your head out of the past and embrace the future. Simply throwing money at a broken government school system which seems to only want to sexualize our kids, is not going to cut it. We need to reclama our education system, and NOW!
There it is folks. WalMart is starting has joined this march to the future and will soon be followed by many more. Looking for a job at WalMart? Better have your skills updated. The future seems to have crept up on us overnight. Least wise, it seems that way.
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