Working Paper – DIGITAL FUTURES OF WORK

Working Paper 10 – Human centric lifelong learning for an era of digital transformation

This working paper begins by outlining examples of where digital innovation in the workplace appears to give rise to new forms of learning, ranging from quite focused and instrumental, to more broadly cultural shifts. We then consider how digital innovation undermines the conventional methods and assumptions around the anticipation of skill needs. Turning to lifelong learning, we argue for the necessity of a plural concept and note how major international articulations have moved over time. A br

Working Paper 9 – The digital evolution of higher education: From high – cost failures to high – risk futures

The societal contribution of higher education is for many inestimable and time-honoured. Inan age of spectacular technological innovation, however, the role and relevance of universitiesis increasingly scrutinised and challenged. In this article we consider how universities arebeing impacted by and responding to a seemingly infinite emergence of new digitaltechnologies particularly as relates to their role as facilitators of high skilled knowledgeeconomies. We draw on the varied perspectives of

Working Paper 7 : Finland: AI, policy innovation and the future of work and learning

Finland is perceived as one of the most innovative countries in the world, resting on high trust, well-being and global engagement. In a small open economy, the ability to navigate and build strategic relations in a growing economic and geo-political complexity, strategic foresight has over time become deeply embedded in policy making. Through the lens of the Finnish AI strategy process and the recent continuous learning reform, the paper discusses the deployment of foresight as a means to addre

Working Paper 8 : English approaches to digital skills policy – some reflections on current directions and developments

This paper provides a critical overview of the UK government’s strategy for addressing digital skill needs. It locates this issue against a backdrop of multiple policy challenges, including relative economic decline, flatlining productivity growth, the effects of Brexit and the issues thrown up by transition to Net Zero. One of the central themes is the question of governmental capacity and where digital skills sits within a hierarchy of policy ‘needs’ and priorities. The paper starts with

Working Paper 6 : The Rise of the Digital Labour Market: Characteristics and Implications for the Study of Education, Opportunity and Work

The study of education and work has typically focused on the role of the credential in shaping individual opportunities in the competition of jobs. Despite its pivotal role in understanding the link between education and work how the labour market operates in an increasingly digital context has remained under-researched. This article explains why the digital labour market is in urgent need of study, not only because of a decline in the perceived value of credentials, but also because rapid digit

Working Paper 5 : Rethinking lifelong learning in the ‘fourth industrial revolution’

Two key discourses of our time, lifelong learning (LLL) and the fourth industrial revolution (4IR), have been inextricably linked to offer a compelling narrative of the coupling of education models and technological change to enable individual empowerment, social inclusion, and a shared prosperity. This article takes an analytical view, examining the development and use of each concept and identifying how they have come to be brought together. We suggest that despite fundamental flaws, the 4IR h

Working Paper 4 : Technological change and labour substitution: can firm characteristics shield workers against automation?

A burgeoning literature has emerged examining the potential of technology to automate labour. Much of this work, however, has relied on expert opinions and is ‘de-contextualised’, with little use of data on firms’ actual behaviour. We employ a rich dataset of over 3,800 companies to explore whether certain firm characteristics (firms’ stock of skills, organizational structure, competitive strategies and management’s perception of their workforce) can have a ‘sheltering effect’ on j

Working Paper 3 : Initial Thoughts on Policy Issues for the Future of Work

This working paper explores the range of possible futures for the world of work and employment, and the possible policy responses thereunto. It starts with a critical overview of some of the key issues concerned with how thinking about and forecasting the future is taking place at global and other levels. Digital innovation is only one of a set of challenges that policy makers face, and often its effects overlay and amplify pre-existing trends and challenges. The paper goes on to offer a framewo

Working Paper 2: Education, technology and the future of work in the fourth industrial revolution

It is widely believed that digital technologies are transforming all aspects of economy and society, driven by advances across a number of interdisciplinary fields and new technologies such as, artificial intelligence, robotics, additive manufacturing, synthetic biology, and smart materials. Public debate has largely focused on the threat of large-scale technological unemployment, although similar concerns were evident in earlier industrial revolutions. This raises the questions of what, if anyt

Working Paper 1: Digital futures of work: reimagining jobs, skills and education for the digital age

Digital innovation is widely recognised as a game changer. Despite attention-grabbing headlines of robots outsmarting humans leading to widespread technological unemployment and counter claims that technology will create more good jobs than it destroys just like in previous epochs, there has been little systematic analysis or evaluation of exactly how digital technologies will impact on skills, jobs and the wider economy by 2030 and beyond. This three-year research programme (2019-2023) seeks to