Global Economy & Labor

Agility

The ability to move quickly and think or understand easily, highly valued for growing job roles.

Alignment

The act of matching strategies or skills with specific business or sustainability goals.

Allocate

To distribute tasks or resources, often performed by algorithms in modern management.

Alliances

Unions or partnerships built to create robustness and preparedness.

Ambiguous

Open to more than one interpretation; uncertain and not clearly defined.

Amid

In the middle of or during a period of significant change or technological advance.

Analytical thinking

A methodical approach to breaking down complex problems; a top skill for the future.

Anomalous

Deviating from what is normal or expected; unpredictable factors like "kids, customers, coconuts".

Anticipate

To predict or expect future needs or disruptions in the workforce.

Apprehension

Anxiety or fear about future events, such as the impact of GenAI on jobs.

Are in awe

Feeling a sense of wonder and respect mixed with fear.

Asset-stripping

The process of losing human skills by outsourcing them to machines and technology.

Blindsided

Being caught off guard by sudden, unexpected changes in the market or society.

Bravery

Courageous behavior required to run experiments and innovate in organizations.

Climate adaptation efforts

Actions taken by businesses and countries to adjust to the effects of climate change.

Complex

Systems where patterns exist but do not repeat regularly, and small changes have massive impacts.

Complicated

Linear and predictable systems, distinguished from "complex" systems.

Compassion

The human capacity for empathy and understanding, which can be eroded by over-reliance on tech.

Core and emerging skills

Fundamental skills currently required versus those projected to grow in importance by 2030.

Coupled with

Combined with or occurring simultaneously with other trends like technological change.

Crucial

Extremely important or decisive for the success of an organization or strategy.

Curiosity

A strong desire to learn, listed as a core human-centric skill for the future.

Data-driven conditioning

Training or physical preparation based strictly on data and generic patterns.

Demographic shifts

Changes in population characteristics, such as aging workforces in developed economies.

Dexterity

Skill and coordination in performing tasks, especially with the hands.

Differentiator

A key factor or skill that distinguishes growing job roles from declining ones.

Digital access

The ability to connect to and use digital technologies and information.

Disproportionate impact

A situation where a small change leads to an unexpectedly large result.

Drafters

Professionals who produce technical drawings; a role requiring high manual dexterity.

Efficiency

The state of achieving maximum productivity with minimum wasted effort; often at odds with robustness.

Emerge

To become apparent or prominent, especially regarding new skill demands.

Empathy and active listening

Interpersonal skills involving deep understanding of others; resistant to AI substitution.

Endurance

The physical or mental stamina required to perform tasks over a long period.

Environmental stewardship

The responsible management and protection of the environment.

Existential crises

Situations that threaten the very survival of a person or an organization.

Experiment

A trial or test used to discover how the real world works when models fail.

Expertise

High-level knowledge or skill in a particular field.

Forecasting

The attempt to predict future events, which is increasingly difficult in a complex world.

Fragile

Easily broken or damaged; for example, banks with too little capital.

Frank

Honest, open, and direct communication, especially about difficult subjects.

Geoeconomic fragmentation

The division of the global economy into separate blocs due to policy or conflict.

Gig economy

A labor market characterized by short-term contracts and freelance work rather than permanent jobs.

Global Skills Taxonomy

The World Economic Forum's system for classifying and categorizing professional skills.

Granular

Very detailed and consisting of many small, individual elements.

Gut-wrenching

Causing great mental or emotional pain or distress.

Have the market muscle

Possessing significant economic power to influence or control a market.

Imagination

The creative ability to envision new possibilities; a source of resilience.

Ineradicable uncertainty

A permanent state of not knowing what the future holds that cannot be removed.

Inflection point

A decisive moment of significant change, such as the release of ChatGPT.

Informing insights

Deep understandings derived from data that guide workforce development.

Inventiveness

The human talent for exploration and creating things that haven't existed before.

Just-in-case A strategy of preparing for certain but ambiguous events by building robustness.

Just-in-time

An efficiency-focused management style that provides resources only when needed.

Lifelong learning

The ongoing pursuit of knowledge and skills throughout one's life and career.

Manual dexterity

Coordination of small muscle movements, often in the hands.

Motivation and self awareness

Core human-centric skills focused on internal drive and understanding one's character.

Nuanced judgment

The ability to make subtle, context-based decisions that AI cannot yet replicate.

Occupational fields

Specific sectors or areas of professional employment.

On the brink of

At the very edge of a significant event, often a disaster or collapse.

Outcast

A person rejected by their colleagues or society.

Pariah

Someone who is socially rejected or despised by others.

Physical execution

The actual performance of a task requiring bodily movement.

Poise

A state of calm and unflinching dedication under extreme pressure.

Proficiency gap

The difference in the level of expertise required for growing versus declining jobs.

Proliferated

Spread or increased rapidly in numbers or popularity.

Public awareness

The general level of understanding the public has about a topic, like GenAI.

Quadrant

One of four sections on a chart used to categorize skills.

Reckless

Acting without thinking of the consequences; sometimes necessary for bold experiments.

Redeployed

Moved to a new position or task within the same organization.

Renewed bonds

The strengthening of social connections and loyalty within a group.

Resilience

The capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; a key differentiator for growing jobs.

Reskilling

Learning entirely new skills to transition into a different job role.

Resource management

The efficient use and allocation of an organization's resources.

Responsiveness

The quality of reacting quickly and positively to changes or crises.

Robust

Strong and healthy; providing options and protection against the unexpected.

Scientific management

A management theory that standardizes work for maximum efficiency.

Seamless

Smooth and continuous, with no apparent gaps, especially in digital experiences.

Skill disruption

The process by which existing professional skills become obsolete or change.

Solidarity

Unity or agreement of feeling or action, especially among people with a common interest.

Spurious

False or fake; not being what it purports to be, like a false sense of a certain future.

Stamina

The physical or mental strength to keep going through a difficult situation.

Standardized model

A rigid framework that attempts to fit reality into predictable patterns.

Stewardship

The job of supervising or taking care of something, like the environment.

Substitution potential

The likelihood that technology (like AI) can replace a human in a specific task.

Supervise

To observe and direct the work of others.

Systems thinking

The ability to understand how parts of a whole interact with each other.

Talent management

The strategic process of managing an organization's human capital.

Technological literacy

The ability to use, understand, and assess technology effectively.

To be adrift

Being without direction, purpose, or the skills to navigate the future.

To be constrained

To be limited or restricted by external factors.

To be in thrall

Being under the total control or influence of a myth or idea.

To be uniform

Being consistent and the same across different groups or regions.

To call the shots

To be the person who makes the important decisions and is in control.

To force-fit

To try to make something fit into a model where it doesn't naturally belong.

To teeter

To be in an unsteady position, close to falling or failing.

Trade wars

Economic conflicts where countries impose tariffs or quotas on each other.

Trade-off

A balance achieved between two desirable but incompatible features.

Uncharted future

A vision of the future that is unknown and cannot be mapped in advance.

Unflinching

Not showing fear or hesitation in the face of difficulty.

Unwavering

Steady and resolute; not changing or weakening.