The rise of big data has led to a great deal of excitement in its potential. Part of the hype surrounds big datas ability to maximize efficiency and improve company operations. This can be accomplished a number of ways, from micro-targeting customers for marketing campaigns to identifying fraud and waste in financial transactions. Many companies have caught on to the advantage that big data analytics brings, and that has resulted in a technological revolution of sorts. Big data has spread everywhere, creeping into nearly any type of job you can imagine, from retail to sports to governments. With this growing popularity has come an even bigger concern. With so much happening in big data analytics, could that eventually lead to more data-driven unemployment? After all, greater efficiency usually leads the need for fewer jobs. As it turns out, the concerns surrounding data and computers taking over peoples jobs are legitimate.
The foundation for these concerns lies in several studies conducted by reputable organizations. One study from the World Economic Forum predicts that well see a reduction in 5 million jobs over the next five years, all thanks to computers and robots utilizing big data more. As worrying as that prediction is, thats nothing compared to a recent Oxford University study that estimated artificial intelligence will lead to half of all jobs in the U.S. becoming obsolete, all within the next two decades. As big data becomes more prominent, and data science is used in a variety of industries, many jobs can now be performed by computers or robots. In a sense, experts are predicting that data science, as promising as it is, will put a lot of people out of a job.
Perhaps this shouldnt come as a surprise since weve been through this kind of revolution before. Decades ago, robots were starting to be installed in factories across the world, leading to many workers worrying about losing their jobs to new technology. This, in fact, did happen to varying degrees, and with a similar technological shift upon us, many more people fear they will lose their jobs to a machine. In many cases, this is already happening, though it isnt as direct as before. In decades past, a company with billions in revenue and more in evaluation would normally feature millions of employees. Now, similar companies will typically have hundreds of thousands of workers on their payroll. The number of employees needed to run a modular data center is simply fewer than is needed on a factory assembly line, even if the revenue is comparable.
The truth is that more data leads to more automation. Thanks to advances made in analytics solutions and machine learning, computers can learn and adapt at an accelerated pace. What has happened as a result is that a new economy has risen up, one quite a bit different than before. Now data engineers and data scientists have become valuable parts of the organization, and a shift in that direction is expected. But does that mean the worst case scenario predictions will come true? Not necessarily. Many experts believe that while some jobs will be lost, humans will still be needed for data analysis. Thats in part due to the fact that humans are much better at interpreting data than computers are. Consider the new economy as one where collaboration between human and machine on data is closer than ever before.
Its also important to note that the jobs lost to big data wont always be of the low wage, blue collar variety. As has been noted, some tech companies have recently revealed new features giving non-data experts the ability to analyze and interpret business data. So even the responsibilities and tasks done by data scientists may become automated in a way. If thats the case, the surge weve seen in data-related jobs may slow to a trickle and possibly even plummet in the coming decades. While its true that some jobs may be made better with data, others may disappear completely.
From what weve seen in the past, coupled with expert predictions for the future, its clear were in the middle of a new technological revolution. That means a great deal of uncertainty, particularly with jobs being influenced by big data. As a result, there is cause for some worry as jobs become automated and data takes over. At the same time, its important not to overreact to these major shifts. A great deal of adaptation will need to take place, but the end result will likely be a stronger and more productive economy.
