What are the fastest growing jobs driven by and what industries are most affected by this growth?
Right now, they are driven significantly by three strong macro-trends - digital transformation, the clean economy transition, and demographic change.
We can all see that advancement in AI is changing the landscape. But digital transformation such as automation, and data analytics are also fuelling demand for tech roles like software developers, cybersecurity analysts, and data scientists. It’s not just in tech companies either – it extends across almost every industry from health to finance to manufacturing.
As countries and cities decarbonise, we’re seeing rapid growth in clean-tech, renewable energy, and sustainability-focused roles. Solar installers, environmental engineers, carbon analysts, and specialists are all in high-demand as places transition to a low-emissions economies.
The rise in elderly populations is creating demand for healthcare professionals, aged care workers, and tech-enabled health services. At the same time, health-tech is merging with digital tools to change how care is delivered.
There are a lot of industries that are directly affected by this growth. Tech and digital services, healthcare and social assistance, clean energy and environmental services, advanced manufacturing and engineering, agritech and food innovation and creative industries, especially gaming and screen.
These trends are a great match with our city’s growth sectors: aerospace, health-tech and resilient communities, clean-tech, food & agritech and Antarctic science.
Nobody knows what jobs will exist in the future, so what can we prepare for?
What we do know is that change, particularly technological change, will continue at a rapid pace. Even employers don’t know what technical skills will be required in 5 years’ time because technology is changing so quickly. The ability to adapt to this change and develop strong transferable skills will be critical.
We know the most in-demand transferable skills for NZ employers are communication skills; problem-solving and critical thinking; adaptability and flexibility; and time management and organisational skills. Leadership skills like strategic thinking and team management will be increasingly in demand; as will the ability to analyse data and insights as we have access to increasing amounts of information.
Technical skills like programming and coding; data analysis and interpretation; and proficiency with data management and analytics tools will also be sought after – although the nature of these tools and systems will change.
Life-long learning and constant upskilling will be required to keep up with the change. So, we can work to develop and equip ourselves with these skills, that we can apply to future jobs, rather than prepare for a job itself that may or may not exist in the future.
