Research on Future Skill Demands A Workshop Summary (2008) / Chapter Skim
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3 Skill Demands of Knowledge Work
3 Skill Demands of Knowledge Work
Pages 15-28
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workers and scientific knowledge workers in the biotechnology industry. KNOWLEDGE WORKERS AND FUTURE SKILL DEMANDS Israeli sociologist Asaf Darr (University of Haifa)
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, arguing that this group, which combines service, technology, and software application, makes up the core of the emerging knowledge economy. The group includes software application engineers, technical support, engineering and scientific consulting, software implementers, and detailers.
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Second, Darr observed a "blurring of cultural distinctions between technical and social skills." He found that, in their daily practice, sales engineers are simultaneously engaged in knowledge work and service work, deploying social and interactive skills that are closely intertwined with technical skills. He said that "as the technical complexity of sales increases, so does the need to depend on social and interactive skills." Based on his research, Darr outlined several ways to strengthen engineering education.
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IT service and software development companies are doing all new hiring of software engineers in India, and Indian engineers are using the newest software programs, while engineers based in the United States work with older "legacy" software. According to Kenney, a recent National Research Council workshop (2007b)
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Kenney explained that India is rapidly becoming more internationally competitive. He presented two figures depicting the evolution of India's information technology sector, which grew increasingly sophisticated between 1995 and 2006 and now includes research and development, integrated circuit design, and packaged software (see Figure 3-2 and Figure 3-3)
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Kenney concluded that the rapid offshore movement of some scientific and engineering jobs -- particularly those in IT services and software development -- is likely to continue. Nevertheless, he provided several reasons for optimism, stating "we are an entrepreneurial society" and "the most innovative startups in the world are being established and funded in the United States." Echoing Finegold's earlier presentation, Kenney noted that the United States has flexible labor markets, cutting-edge consumers, and great universities.
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He suggested that, given the continuing wage differential, American engineers would have to create higher value in order to maintain their higher wages. Referring to Darr's presentation, Kenney said that developing technoservice workers, with strong technical knowledge and social skills, is "where we need to go with our engineers." KNOWLEDGE WORKERS IN BIOTECHNOLOGY: OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE, CAREERS, AND SKILL DEMANDS Management professor Fiona Murray (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
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SOCS Occupations and Labor markets Skills, training, occupational human and social structure capital Career paths FIGURE 3-4 Framework for analyzing knowledge work in biotechnology. SOURCE: Murray and Hsi (2007a)
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In chemistry, the industry has a continued need for medicinal chemists, while organic chemistry in universities has become increasingly focused on biology. A more significant skills shortage results from "a mismatch in style of training," Murray said, as current doctoral training across the scientific disciplines does not develop the "soft" skills required by biotechnology firms.
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In reality, Murray said, most companies are using a mixture of both approaches. Response David Finegold first commended Murray for recognizing that the biotechnology workforce is part of "a wider ecosystem," including people in higher education, supplier firms, intellectual property attorneys, and venture capitalists as well as those directly employed in biotechnology firms.
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She suggested providing students more opportunities to make presentations and receive feedback and integrating learning of communication skills with science content, rather than having separate communication classes. At the doctoral level, she said, employers say that they can find many people with the right scientific or technical skills, but they wonder whether these technical experts are "going to be team players." Murray said that current doctoral education focuses too much on giving people scientific knowledge and techniques, with little thought about helping students "to actually organize their education." Murray said that almost all biotechnology employees, even those in manufacturing, have at least a bachelor's degree.
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For example, teams of high school students are developing business plans for new biotechnology companies and presenting them to venture capitalists. In response to a question, Murray said that many biotechnology firms use stock options to supplement salaries, and that smaller firms offer smaller salaries but provide stock options to more employees.
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Darr said that this is another solution to the skills challenge that is "not integrated." Bechky offered several concluding observations about the skill demands of knowledge work. First, in contrast to the public perception, this work requires not only abstract knowledge and technical skill, but also manual and social skills.
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develop the social skills they require when they are promoted to management positions. Bechky mentioned that there has there has been a great deal of research on matrix management as one approach to managing knowledge workers (e.g., Ford and Randolph, 1992)
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