According to the best projections available through 1995, the largest increase in jobs will take place in such fields as medical services, business services, computers and peripheral equipment, transportation, professional services, scientific instruments, communications, and plastic products. Here we're talking industry, not specifically data processing - but if you recall the statistics presented in the introduction and first chapter of this book, all industry in the future will have as its base some form of data processing. Therefore, if you are trying to analyze future industries that could afford you the best opportunity for growth and advancement, you might consider those I have just mentioned.
However, that doesn't mean that you should give up on an industry in which you have a particular interest in order to enhance your chances of success. Many naturally gifted teachers were dissuaded from entering the profession a few years ago because it was over-crowded. They ended up in other fields that probably did make them more money, but the teaching profession lost needed talent, and the chances are that these people never really found happiness in their other career choices. While I heartily recommend thinking about those business areas that offer a bright future, I must fall back on my basic thesis that people with the right attitude and strategy for success will achieve their goals in virtually whatever they set out to do. Besides, along with career success, we have an obligation to ourselves to find happiness and fulfillment in our lives.
Industry groups aside, there are significant changes occurring within data processing itself that might be worth thinking about.
For instance, there is a definite move toward developing data processing generalists. The reason is simple: companies have found that they need to overstaff their data processing departments in order to have on hand a wide variety of skills to handle peak loads. This is expensive. When skilled employees spend a great deal of time on the job doing nothing or very little, they get bored and leave. That reality forces companies not only to overstaff, but to pay high salaries in an attempt to keep their DPers happy.
A more cost-effective solution is now being pursued, which is to develop selected individuals into data processors with a wide range of skills, and to pay accordingly for their increased value to a company. That's why it is so important to be continually seeking out new avenues of education and experience within the broad spectrum of data processing.
Another trend in data processing is the increased focus on managing of information within an organization. One of the keys to any company's success is the ability to create, assimilate, produce, and distribute timely information. With the advent and growth of desktop publishing, more and more information is being generated and produced in-house, and individuals who are able to create systems through which the flow of information can be expedited will be in demand.
Anyone who can add to his or her title the term "telecommunications" will enjoy increased demand and opportunity over the next ten years. As management in every industry looks to cut labor costs, the use of automated equipment to service customer needs will increase proportionately. Banks are a good example; the growth of ATMs (automatic teller machines) is well documented, and the move toward increasing this approach to labor saving shows a distinct upward trend. Wherever the technology of the computer age can be applied, the need for talented and skilled personnel to create the systems and make them work is enhanced.
Computer security is another growth area in data processing that will need a large number of new people in coming years. The theft of information from computer systems has become of paramount importance to governments and private industry alike, and huge sums are being spent to secure data processing operations.
Most significant for you to remember is that as our entire industrial base becomes more dependent upon computer technology, the importance of people like yourself increases in every area of data processing. The move toward totally automated offices and factories is like a steamroller in our society, and those who ride with it are the individuals who are constantly looking in the direction of its progress and preparing for the next stop on its journey.
There are other things every data processor should be thinking about when pondering a future in data processing. Some of them are:
- Keep up with the field. Achievers in any field find the time and expend the effort to keep current with what's going on, not only as it applies to their specific jobs but as it affects their industry as a whole. Data processing has given birth to numerous trade publications, and you should at least make it a point to read the relevant ones each month.
- Keep learning. Learning is a lifetime pursuit. At least, it should be. Because of the maze of technology in data processing, it takes extra effort to keep up with state-of-the-art concepts. But it must be done to prevent falling behind. At the same time-and based upon the sort of data presented in this book, which indicate that successful DPers in the future will have to become proficient at written and verbal communication-educational avenues to prepare you for these non-computer skills must be pursued, too. Acquiring communication skills doesn't have to represent a long-term commitment in the way that data processing does. Proficient writing is a learned craft and should be viewed that way. Your goal should be to create clear and succinct business correspondence. Once you have learned the craft of writing (and, possibly, have taken some courses in public speaking, so that you're comfortable making verbal presentations, too), the skills are maintained and sharpened by doing, and by incorporating writing and speaking into your daily activities.
