I haven’t been able to stop thinking about a factoid I heard a few weeks ago at a workshop by Randstad’s Jim Link on the topic of the changing global workforce. He quoted this statistic:  65% of preschool kids will have jobs that don’t exist today.

Of course, when we stop to think about it, it’s rings true.  If someone told us 20 years ago that we’d be hiring for jobs titled Cyber Security Analyst or a Social Media Content Manager we would have said “What?”, yet we now know exactly what they are.

So what might be some jobs of the future?  I found a great article listing 8 imaginative futuristic jobs proposed by Sparks & Honey, a New York culture/trend-spotting firm.

1.    Digital Death Manager

2.    Un-Schooling Counselor

3.    Arm Chair Explorer

4.    3-D Printing Handyman

5.    Microbial Balancer

6.    Corporate Disorganizer

7.    Digital Detox Specialist

8.    The Urban Shepherd

Let me expand on my favorite 3 as explained by their CEO.

Digital Death Manager

We currently record what we do and how we feel by: taking pictures, adding a caption and then posting it on social media.  There will be a role for someone to organize all this data into a cohesive story, a personal history. A legacy.  Like having your own presidential library.

Digital Detox Specialist

“The digital overload will become even more overwhelming. There will be people who can help others lead less data-centric lives, or at least find a better balance. In some cases, they’ll even organize digital rehabs.”  Actually, this already exists.

The Urban Shepherd

As more cities become green, “urban shepherds” will be needed to maintain the new green infrastructure. “You need someone who is going to take care of the urban beehives, who’s going to make sure your composting is set up correctly, and who is going to know how to curate the vertical gardens”.  Can you imagine?

And here’s the kicker, even more interesting than the actual article was this observation by someone down in the comments, making predictions about each job:

1. Will be done by app
2. Will be done by app or crowdsourcing
3. Will be done by autonomous drones
4. Will be done by app and crowdsourcing
5. Will be done by app
6. I agree!
7.  I agree! But only for older generations
8. I agree.

Mind. Blown. Welcome to the future.

Here’s a great article on preparing youth for jobs that don’t yet exist.

© Copyright Eva Del Rio

Eva Del Rio is creator of HR Box™ – tools for small businesses and startups. Send questions to Eva@evadelrio.com