Success Secrets and Stories
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Success Secrets and Stories
The New Collar Economy: Skills, Technology, and Workforce Trends
Disruption isn't coming—it's already here. As we navigate the rapidly shifting landscape of work in 2025, organizations face a critical crossroads that will determine their future success or failure. This eye-opening episode dives deep into eleven transformative trends reshaping how we work, hire, and grow businesses in the coming years.
The skills mismatch crisis demands immediate attention, with employers predicting that 44% of workers' skills will become obsolete by 2030. We explore practical approaches to bridging this gap through strategic talent assessment, development, and retention—actions that forward-thinking organizations must implement before 2025 to avoid operational disaster.
John and Greg unpack the fascinating emergence of "new collar" jobs—positions requiring specialized technical skills without necessarily demanding advanced degrees—and how this shift is creating unexpected opportunities across manufacturing, AI, cybersecurity, and traditional trades. Meanwhile, the fastest-growing segment of the workforce isn't Gen Z, but workers aged 75+, leading to what experts call "the golden age of the silver worker." Organizations failing to leverage the knowledge transfer and mentorship potential of these experienced employees risk missing a significant competitive advantage.
Despite progress in gender equity, with women now holding 10% of Fortune 500 CEO positions, advancement has slowed considerably. We examine how closing the gender gap could boost global GDP by a staggering 20% and spotlight companies like Starbucks that have successfully achieved wage parity.
Whether you're an HR professional, organizational leader, or someone navigating your own career path through uncertain times, this episode provides actionable insights on preparing for 2025's workplace realities. The future belongs to those who prepare for it today—start by understanding these eleven critical trends that will define success in tomorrow's dramatically transformed workplace.
Presented by John Wandolowski and Greg Powell
Welcome to Success Secrets and Stories. I'm your host, john Wondoloski, and I'm here with my co-host and friend, greg powell. Greg, hey, everybody, yeah, so today on our podcast, we're going to talk about um 11 trends in 2025 embracing disruption, and it was an interesting article by Eric Van Volpen, dr Dieter Welsman, dr Marna Van Der Merwer, monica Nemkovic.
Speaker 1:It was on a website called wwwaihrcom and it's the blog for HR trends and it's the blog for HR Trends. The reason I thought that this was a very interesting article is it had a wonderful Disney line right at the beginning of the article and the article really did support a lot of the disruptions that we're talking about. Walt Disney famously said times and conditions change so rapidly that we must keep our aim constantly focused on the future and, to the point this article of 2025, we certainly have proven that year as being transformative and change and disruptive in terms of reshaping the working world. So they had a number of themes and the first thing that they're talking about is the technological transformation and it is the new business reality. Technology and AI are no longer future trends. They are current business realities, transforming how organizations function at each level, function at each level. The pace and change continues to accelerate, making the effectiveness, integration and technology and AI critical for organizations to stay competitive. This tectonic shift requires significant rethinking of roles, skills, processes, prompting HR to consider how these transformations reshape the organization, the workplace and people's management. Beyond adopting new tools, hr must focus on instilling a mindset of innovation, agility and, with their employees, to take full advantage of technical advancements. So I'm going to skip down and I'm going to skip over the AI stuff, because I'm really not qualified to go into detail about AI.
Speaker 1:The third point is the tipping point for skills match or mismatch. As new technologies emerge, the skills needed in the workplace are rapidly shifting, leading to a growing mismatch between current employees' capacities and future requirements. Organizations are struggling to clearly identify and anticipate the skills needed in the medium and long term, thereby failing to proactively address skill gaps. This leaves them vulnerable and with decreasing productivity, innovation and competitiveness in an evolving market. Here's their key point. Furthermore, employers believe 44% of the workers' skills will be disruptive by 2030, and that 6 out of 10 workers will require additional training before 2027. Resolving these skill gaps is an imperative for the HR department, as 70% of company leaders believe that their organizational skill gaps negatively impacts the business performance. Bridging such severe gaps requires organizations to fundamentally rethink their approaches to the workforce management. To succeed in these disruptive times, leaders must identify crucial needs for both today and for the future, anticipating how to utilize these skills and develop more effective strategies for attracting, nurturing and retaining talent with the right set of skills skills.
Speaker 1:I just want to step back for a second. That's probably the most important part is to attract, nurture and retain talent. So I'm going to put a star on that because that is a very key point. Time is running out for such strategies and must be in place before the end of 2025. So they're hitting the sign that you need to do this as soon as possible.
Speaker 1:If organizations are hoping to avoid massive operational disruption, they need to direct the skills to handle the mismatches, and the article went on to talk about how, what, the causes, the impacts and the solutions in terms of different examples, and we're going to get into that a little bit. But for me, when I heard about what's coming and how to prepare for it, I kept on thinking about the basic skills assessment, of knowing what you have in your organization already, to be somehow testing your talent, to understand how prepared they are for the future, maybe taking some time to really work with the HR department on what you anticipate, and the whole idea of engaging with the HR department to prepare. Right now, it's probably testing and looking for resources for training, but that's not an easy question. Resources for training, but that's not an easy question, greg. What kind of tools can the HR department and the organizations use in order to try to prepare for this.
Speaker 2:So, john, there are numerous tests, assessments, employee skill evaluation tools available. There's just a plethora of them out there. But the exercise of using and interpreting the results of the tool, that's the real trick Making sure you get the data out and you get it right. Typically, hr talent management professionals can cut through that, they can administer the assessment, they can interpret the results and create a comprehensive analysis of the state of skills in the workplace today so that you can plan for tomorrow. Okay, cool.
Speaker 1:So they came up with a really interesting term that I think you can help me with, because I haven't heard this term before in an HR context. Maybe you can take that new term in the HR world, okay.
Speaker 2:Got it, john, thank you. So let's talk about that new term blue collar and new collar. Right, the new collar jobs boom. So blue collar, new collar jobs are increasingly gaining traction among today's workforce. As demand for skilled labor in both traditional trades and high tech sectors continues to grow, job market is once again booming with opportunities Higher pay, increased interest from younger generations, especially in artisanal and technical fields. While the tech sector was cutting jobs, manufacturing job postings went up 46%. There's a high demand for skills that require physical labor and for people who can install and repair equipment from elevators to power plants. Due to increasing college costs and student loan debts, we could also expect to see more and more youth choosing artisanal trades. Let's talk a little bit more about that.
Speaker 2:New-collar jobs, which require advanced skills in high-tech areas like artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, but not necessarily advanced degrees, are also on the rise. These jobs provide significant opportunities for skilled workers, often blue-collar workers who have the necessary soft skills or mindset to learn new skills through practical experience or occupational training. So what does this mean for HR and their organizations? The rise of blue-collar and new-collar jobs presents significant opportunities to reconsider work design. It involves rethinking the way these jobs are organized, including aspects like schedule flexibility, job responsibility and the physical and technical tools workers use to perform their duties.
Speaker 2:Hr must develop strategies that focus on empowering and supporting blue-collar and new-collar talent through targeted recruitment, onboarding and talent management practices, while also investing in technologies that enhance their productivity and job satisfaction. So we've got some HR trends and we're going to look kind of like HR before 2025, hr in 2025, kind of that next frontier for human resources. So filling short-term skill gaps, no long-term planning. That's what was going on before 2025. Well, we're moving to long-term, skills-based workforce planning and that's going to tackle the gaps between current and future needs and again, continuing with that HR before 2025, looking at HR in 2025. So let's move to slow progress in gender equity. That was before 2025. Organizations invest in policies that advance gender equity through flexibility, fair pay and leadership opportunities. Another theme anxiety-driven workplace with minimal support In the future, addressing organizational anxiety through transparency, well-being and enabling high performance.
Speaker 1:And what I liked about this article and they go into a lot more detail. We're kind of taking the HR light version of this, but developing an approach to testing and evaluating and cross-training are all those basic skills that we're supposed to be doing to prepare staff, and what they're trying to do is they're putting a huge spotlight on. This is different, and the new collar concept that I'm still trying to grasp is how does that change? Everybody's not going to be a computer programmer and I love the idea that they're going to have AI opportunities and cyber security issues, but there is also going to be another change in terms of the operational world, like I remember when we were bringing in automation and the robotics support people fixing robotics, people who understand machine language, not computer language, and how relays are now turning into equations. That's the next step. You know how important math is, how important basic engineering skills are. Those are all the things that are the new collar that they're talking about.
Speaker 1:Greg, what kind of testing is currently available? I'm assuming it's going to be, you know, more current trying to handle these trends, but what kind of tools are available that people can use?
Speaker 2:John, there's some really comprehensive tools available. Essentially, what you're trying to do is create a comprehensive skills assessment center for your organization. That's job one. The results will fuel a plan for how to manage your talent, skills and needs for the future. Do you need, like, for instance, more entry-level specialty engineers to grow in the organization? Do we need to cut back on college recruiting for financial professionals? Can we train current employees to perform different tasks needed today and in the future? There's some great vendors out there. I've used a few of these, but Qualtrics, Center for Creative Leadership, Gartner, Deloitte. Again, the tests, the tools for measuring talent, are plentiful.
Speaker 1:The tests, the tools for measuring talent are plentiful. So, with the HR concepts, we've talked a little bit about the theme one of anticipating these changes. The author is now going to theme two. Theme two shifting talent dynamics.
Speaker 1:There's economic uncertainties, demographic changes, modern science, society expectations are redefining the workplace. These changes have reached a crossroad and new expectations in terms of work styling I've emerged across the workforce. Women are pushing for true equity in the workplace. There's the challenge of older workers, both expanding and contracting. So there are those opportunities where older workers want to work longer. With the factors in play, organizations face both the challenges and the opportunities in building a resistant and motivated workforce. Understanding why the roads have led us here will help HR adapt to changes. More importantly, they will help their companies to get ahead in the trends of 2025, contribute to the organizational success in the years going forward.
Speaker 1:And then the golden age of the silver worker, which I find quite entertaining, since I am part of that group. Whether it's because they can't afford to retire or they don't want to retire, workers age 75 and up compromise the fastest growing segment of the workforce. Yet current HR policies and office setups often overlook these employees because of their age group. Organizations typically lack flexibility, work options, ergonomic office designs or benefits tailored to workers who have chosen the path of unretirement. This is their point that they're talking about. It's a wonderful resource. This is their point that they're talking about. It's a wonderful resource. And the older employees have some of those skill sets that you're looking for, that they should be training the next generation. So these are wonderful opportunities for training in my world. Sorry, I wanted to throw in my two cents. The employer's branding also tends to focus on younger talent, neglecting the value of older workers and what they can bring. Despite this, retirement-aged employees are here to stay and their presence in the workforce is only going to grow. Organizations that can recognize this shift will have a strategic opportunity. By accommodating the needs for the silver workers, they can tap into new levels of productivity, facilitate knowledge transfer and enhance team dynamics and that, I think, is probably the most important point of their discussion. Sorry, back to the point. Just as the early adopters paid transparency gained from the competitive edge, embracing the aging workforce can now position companies to lead in 2025 and beyond.
Speaker 1:Mature workers are looking for purpose and recognition of their value. Included in them is the fabric of business. That means capitalizing on their skills, their strengths, their generational diversity and showing that, aging customers, you will respect their lifestyles and their right to be, their right for dignity. So four ways that HR can support unretired employees. They can create flexible work arrangements by offering part-time or phased retirement or doing something in terms of consulting or project-based work. Two is fostering the mentoring and learning elements of trying to help the unretired employees so they can implement programs and help the younger generation to have that skill building that goes across generations. To design age-inclusive benefits and work environments is one of the elements that HR has to work on because the older worker is going to have different needs. The elements that HR has to work on because the older worker is going to have different needs and to understand their physical limitations and to boost productivity. All of those are going to take organizations that can be creative. And number four, prioritizing lifelong learning and career longevity.
Speaker 1:Just for the fun of it, greg and I are doing this podcast in the terms of putting a hand out and taking the next generation and pulling them up. That's really the purpose of what we're trying to do with the podcast and that's the part that I think is the most engaging for us. We're in retirement. We're both enjoying our retirement. This still gives us the ability and the taste of being able to help and being able to do something to help the next generation and help the business environments where we learned our trade. Greg, what do you think? So, when I think about the Greg, what do you think?
Speaker 2:So when I think about the silver worker, john, I think of a couple of things. You know, the notion of all employees retiring at 65 or earlier, collecting that gold watch and settling into a sedate, social security-based lifestyle in Florida has dramatically changed over time, although I do resemble that remark. Yes, you do. But more recently, senior employees have transitioned out of full-time to part-time to transfer institutional knowledge to remaining employees of the company. That's a good thing. Now a quick story.
Speaker 2:I had several senior leaders who did great things for the company, helped the company grow, and they were hitting their mid-60s and it was just this assumption that they were going to give the boss, the CEO, their resignation letter, thanks and that. And I remember talking to several of these folks and said I'm not ready to quit yet, I'm not ready to leave. I did a lot to help build this company up. I want to help take it to the next level. I got energy and it was. When you listen to that, you're excited. And then you're saying how do I put that into my employee population plan about my succession planning, growing and developing people. So there's a reality to the silverware.
Speaker 1:So, dan, a couple of other points. What was the next one? I thought was kind of interesting and more of an in your HR world that you can talk about.
Speaker 2:Let me share with how I look at this as well, john the women's equity effect as we enter into 2025, or have entered into it. Over 10% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women. That's a milestone. It's been a long time coming since the first edition of the Fortune 500 list. However, the progress of the past five years has begun slowing.
Speaker 2:Women have cracked, but not shattered, the glass ceiling and, considering that closing the gender equity gap would increase global GDP by a staggering 20%, there's no reason not to push for further progress in this area and flexible work practices. Lack of leadership opportunities remain critical issues here and astonishing 95% of women believe requesting flexible work arrangements will negatively affect their chances of promotion. They won't even ask because of that, and women hold on to 28.2% of management positions globally. Employers also did not adequately address female workers' health challenges. For instance, 67% of women who expect menopausal symptoms report a mostly negative impact on their work.
Speaker 2:Businesses have the power to contribute to meaningful change, making a lasting impact on gender equity and reap the significant economic and cultural benefits resulting from a more inclusive and equitable workforce. Forward-thinking organizations are taking charge, demonstrating that fundamental change is possible. Starbucks reached wage parity for its US workers in 2018 and continues to work towards this goal worldwide. Despite these efforts, progress in women's equity cannot be taken for granted. Will other organizations rise to the occasion and capitalize on the impact of women's equity? While some are already doing so, others must follow in order to drive both internal progress and broader societal gains. John, what are your thoughts on this?
Speaker 1:Well, you know, the first thing that rings in my ears when are we going to get that whole element of equality for women? And it can't be this hard to understand that. It's a simple comparison, and the sooner we create that kind of equal opportunity, equal pay mentality, the faster we're going to become successful in my world, as soon as we start dropping all these identifiers and it's just the person and their talent and how we can use them to help them grow in their career. That's why, for me, I kind of personally hate the term performance review and talk about career review, and we have to cast a wider net in order to be productive, and what they're talking about for 2025 is they have to do a better job of looking for opportunities of the people that they have working for them, and they have that advantage of having a step up in order to take on that next challenge, whatever the organization's involved in. Greg, from your perspective, what do you think the challenges are?
Speaker 2:So, john, it's really kind of simple to me, at least. Think about it fundamentally as simple as this. The nation that we live in is diverse. The consumers that buy our products are diverse, so the companies should be diverse that manufacture and sell and market those products. The US population today is 50.5% female, so it really starts at the top of the organizations of the house what the attitude is about diversity and the desired organizational culture that they want to have. Diversity in the organization generates great ideas from different perspectives to get great outcomes.
Speaker 1:So the last point you're talking about is the looming organizational anxiety and between the decrease of customer confidence, the fears of recession, the talk of losing thousands of jobs because of technology. Well, they're trying to say it has its place, but it's also more water cooler talk. Companies in Europe and South Korea are seeing extensive extensions of hours, injecting a sense of crisis into the workers and the managers, and that whole thing about pressure and utilizing the talent that you have to the point of overusing them isn't the answer that they're looking for, as some companies are applying and it's only going to come back to bite them. And as some companies are applying, and it's only going to come back to bite them. A tighter job market and shrinking premium pay is also going to affect a lot of employees, and they're talking about things as the great resignation are going to give way to the big stay I love these terms that people are just going to nest in their roles and they're really not going to be looking for opportunities.
Speaker 1:So in 2025, the pendulum of employee-employer relationships are expected to swing decisively back and forth between economic pressures in the job market and the uncertainties of what companies have in terms of real control. It's going to be an unstable time, but this is often the opportunity to address those anxieties and to maintain connections with your workforce. If you're connected, you're going to have a better job of handling these changes, and change is the key, and communication is the key. Change is never going to stop and the better organizations over-communicate, or at least communicate to the point where they have confidence that the messages are getting through and you, collectively, are trying to address the future. It isn't just management and it isn't just the employees that need to be conscious of what they're doing and try and anticipate that next step. It's all of us trying to make that change and being ready for the next opportunity.
Speaker 2:Greg, outsourcing jobs overseas, declining consumer confidence and rising living costs that aren't being matched by wage increases. If organizational leaders really believe their employees are their greatest asset, this is the time to show it. Preparing for future new job needs now, while incorporating your current employee capabilities into the equation, is a great start.
Speaker 1:Yeah, well said A little bit better than what I was trying to do, but that's the point. We need to take it as a good starting point. If you haven't started to start now, today's a great day to start. This isn't a bad thing, but I love the term new collar because it really is addressing how it's going to change and how you handle that ability to adapt. So I hope you enjoyed this article. If you like what you've heard, I have my book called Building your Leadership Toolbox and it's on Amazon and Barnes, noble and others. The podcast is what you're listening to and thank you so much. We also talk a lot about Dr Durst and his program. That really helped Greg and I start this podcast. You can find his information on successgrowthacademycom and if you'd like to get a hold of us, my email address is wando75.jw at gmailcom and Greg.
Speaker 2:I can be reached at gpowell374 at gmailcom, and Greg, I can be reached at gpowell374 at gmailcom.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and the music has been brought to you by my grandson, so we want to hear from you. Drop us a line. We find it helpful and we've used it in order to try to create the material that we talk about.
Speaker 2:Well, greg, thanks. Thanks, john, as always, next time, yeah.