Preparing For The Future Of Work: Oracle’s Yvette Cameron On The Top Five Trends To Watch In The Future Of Work

There have been major disruptions in recent years that promise to change the very nature of work. From the ongoing shifts caused by the COVID19 pandemic, the impacts caused by automation, and other possible disruptions to the status quo, many wonder what the future holds in terms of employment. For example, a report by the McKinsey Global Institute that estimated automation will eliminate 73 million jobs by 2030.

To address this open question, we reached out to successful leaders in business, government, and labor, as well as thought leaders about the future of work to glean their insights and predictions on the future of work and the workplace.

As a part of this interview series called “Preparing for The Future of Work,” we had the pleasure to interview Yvette Cameron.

Yvette is a known HCM product leader having grown her career in HCM over the past 25+ years with technology vendors SAP, Saba, PeopleSoft, and JD Edwards. She also worked for leading analyst firms Gartner and Constellation Research, and her own technology startup Velocity Career Labs and its governing body, the Velocity Network Foundation. Yvette spent the first 10 years of her career as an HR practitioner, informing her later roles with the practical perspective of an HR user and buyer. Across her career, Yvette has led strategic teams with responsibilities spanning product and industry strategy, strategic alliances, product management and marketing.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers like to get an idea of who you are and where you came from. Can you tell us a bit about your background? Where do you come from? What are the life experiences that most shaped your current self?

As I look back over the years, I’d probably say that my background, my experiences, are characterized by a passion for innovation. My first business? I was in 8th grade and started a grocery shopping and delivery service for a large senior community who were challenged to get out and across a very busy street to the store. I was the analog version of Instacart, only dozens of years early and delivering via foot or bicycle! While that first business venture ended after a mere 5 months, I learned so much about understanding your customers, their needs, and how common challenges affected each differently. I also learned about my own drivers — namely, the joys in solving problems creatively and delighting individuals with those solutions. Fast forward to today, and I’m still living that passion — scanning the landscape, looking for opportunities to bring new innovations to organizations that help solve some of their most pressing challenges, yet always with a focus on the individual.

What do you expect to be the major disruptions for employers in the next 10–15 years? How should employers pivot to adapt to these disruptions?

In the last year to two years, we’ve seen the beginnings of a lot of the disruption employers will need to address over the next decade. The COVID-19 pandemic has created some of the biggest changes to the workplace in recent history, such as taking remote work mainstream and the Great Resignation. Both of these movements started well before the pandemic. Many companies offered occasional remote-work flexibility and a few companies had already adopted 100 percent remote work policies. At the same time, there were many discussions around the importance of mental health at work and stories about professionals in high-paying jobs leaving — happily — for lower paying careers. The strain of the pandemic amplified both of these trends until they became the norm, and workplaces are still trying to figure out the best way to adapt to them.

Businesses are now experimenting with how to manage remote employees and a “hybrid” workforce and will have to answer questions about things like building a cohesive team culture, handling compensation, and ensuring equitable treatment across remote and in-person employees. They will also need to reexamine how they are building their employee experience and infusing their culture into each experience to ensure that their companies are places people want to work.

Over the past year, many workers were able to reflect on their lives and careers and make better decisions about what they are willing to put up with at work. According to Oracle and Workplace Intelligence’s global study of 14,600 workers from 13 countries, 93 percent of people used the past year to reflect on their personal and professional lives, and over 87 percent believe their company should be doing more to listen to the needs of their workforce. At the core of handling these new considerations will be companies listening to their employees. By listening to employees and incorporating their feedback, companies will be able to figure out the best ways to move forward, and to do so in a way that meets both their business needs as well as the individualized needs of their employees.

The choice as to whether or not a young person should pursue a college degree was once a “no-brainer.” But with the existence of many high-profile millionaires (and billionaires) who did not earn degrees, as well as the fact that many graduates are saddled with crushing student loan debt and unable to find jobs it has become a much more complex question. What advice would you give to young adults considering whether or not to go to college?

I’ll start off by saying whether to go to college is a personal choice for every student and only they can make the choice about whether it is right for them. That said, I do believe the focus on formal degrees is an outdated concept that we will see changing in the next several years to instead focus on skills and experiences.

Already many businesses are striking college education from their job requirements to instead focus on skills. I believe the core of talent management and career development for companies going forward is going to be based in skills — finding talent with the needed core competencies and fostering them to strengthen and develop skills that will not only be beneficial for their current roles, but will drive their future careers. College degrees imply that a candidate has a certain set of skills. Some of those skills, such as time management and communication, apply to all college degrees, but other industry specific skills such as coding or statistical analysis are unique to specific degree tracks. And the pace at which those skills become out of date is accelerating given the fast pace of technological change.

However, college is not the only place to learn those skills. Just look at all of the people who changed career paths to something different from what they studied in college. The internet has democratized learning, and many organizations incorporate formal and informal learning and skills development into the services they offer their workforce. I cannot advise the next generation on whether to get a degree, but I can advise them to be continually growing their skills in both technical and the “soft” skills areas like leadership, communication, and empathy. I can also advise companies to spend more time focusing on the skills people actually have, instead of where they learned them.

Despite the doom and gloom predictions, there are, and likely still will be, jobs available. How do you see job seekers having to change their approaches to finding not only employment, but employment that fits their talents and interests?

With an abundance of job opportunities available, workers have found themselves able to more easily seek out and pursue opportunities that allow them to explore their passions and find happiness in their careers. Some have able to make changes to their existing roles while others have decided that they will be better off with a new company or even a completely different industry. During the height of the pandemic, the lack of job security and uncertainty in the economy caused many people to stay put in their roles or take jobs out of necessity rather than passion. With remote and hybrid work here to stay, the market has presented more opportunities for job seekers to explore positions beyond their physical location.

Before they begin diving into what kind of new role or what career path is the right move, workers should take a step back and reflect on what success looks like to them. Once they understand what their talents, interests, and needs are, the job market becomes less overwhelming, and the right opportunities will be easier to identify. A few ways help figure out what success means to each worker include: self-reflection, collecting feedback from their current manager and peers, determining how much flexibility they want in when and where they work, or outlining the type of benefits and salary that suits their lifestyle.

Because employees now hold much more power in deciding when and where they work, they can decide whether it’s worthwhile to stay with their current company or move on to an organization that is adapting to the changing environment and better providing for their staff’s needs.

The statistics of artificial intelligence and automation eliminating millions of jobs, appears frightening to some. For example, Walmart aims to eliminate cashiers altogether and Dominos is instituting pizza delivery via driverless vehicles. How should people plan their careers such that they can hedge their bets against being replaced by automation or robots?

One of the biggest misconceptions about the integration of AI in the workforce is that it is designed to eliminate jobs. Instead, it is more about enabling people to do their jobs better. AI can automate routine or menial tasks and simplify complex tasks, so people can focus on the parts of their job where they add more value. It can also grant users better access to information so they can make better informed decisions to guide their business strategy.

AI can also help people feel less stressed and more in control of their careers. For example, it can help workers identify the skills they need to develop in order to make their next career move. According to recent study by Oracle, 82 percent of workers believe robots can support their career development better than humans and 55 percent said they are more likely to stay with a company that uses AI to support career growth. By deploying AI to help workers advance their careers, companies can help their workers stay more engaged in the company and expand their careers in place instead of looking for greener fields.

Technological advances and pandemic restrictions hastened the move to working from home. Do you see this trend continuing? Why or why not?

Absolutely. The biggest mistake employers can make is limiting flexibility and remote work options to their current and future employees. Remote work can be beneficial for business owners and their staff. For employers, remote workplaces have expanded their talent pool, met workers’ requests for flexibility, boosted productivity, and lowered real estate costs. For employees, the option to work from anywhere has offered a better work-life balance and has improved mental health.

What the pandemic has shown us is that remote work is achievable with the proper tools, technology, and leadership. It has become one of the top requirements for job seekers and the absence of it will only make it harder for companies to recruit and retain top talent.

What societal changes do you foresee as necessary to support the fundamental changes to work?

The rules governing employer-employee relationships have changed since the beginning of the pandemic. Workers have shifted their priorities when it comes to workplace flexibility, work-life balance, manager support and career advancement. And when those new priorities weren’t being met, workers left in waves, giving them much more bargaining power to force businesses to change their policies.

With the power now sitting in employees’ hands, employers need to do a better job at communicating with their workers, adapting to these changes and actively prioritizing workforce well-being. It’s no longer enough for companies to offer ping pong tables, kombucha on tap or 15-minute yoga breaks to make up for their shortcomings. Instead, they need to make real changes that support their employees such as managing workloads to reasonable levels or providing access to necessary resources like childcare or mental health support. Empathy and informed action are new imperatives for today’s leaders.

What changes do you think will be the most difficult for employers to accept?

Employers will need to accept that they do not hold all the cards when it comes to how they treat their employees anymore. With a robust job market, employees have the option to look elsewhere if their employers fail to offer flexibility, hybrid or remote work options, career support, and training. These options are helping drive the Great Resignation and employees will continue to seek new opportunities as long as they hold the power to determine how, when and where they’d like to work. According to a recent study from Oracle and Workplace Intelligence, 80 percent of people are ready to make career changes in the next year, meaning that business will need work harder to provide the options employees want in order to attract and retain top talent.

Despite all the doom and gloom we’ve seen over the past year+, what is your greatest source of optimism about the future of work?

I think that we are standing at a crossroads of self-empowerment for employees and technical innovation. As employees get in better touch with themselves and their needs in the workplace, they’ll find roles and ways of working that allow them to be their most productive and successful. And the technology to help workers find the right opportunity for them is only getting better, allowing businesses to help put workers where they will most shine. Together these trends will create opportunities for people to be happier and more productive in their jobs. There may be some hiccups along the way as businesses break old habits, but ultimately businesses will see better results from their workers.

Historically, major disruptions to the status quo in employment, particularly disruptions that result in fewer jobs, are temporary with new jobs replacing the jobs lost. Unfortunately, there has often been a gap between the job losses and the growth of new jobs. What do you think we can do to reduce the length of this gap?

Much of this gap can be attributed to the number of jobs that no longer meet job seekers’ standards. According a recent study by Oracle, 88 percent of respondents said the meaning of success has changed for them throughout the pandemic, proving that people are looking for more than just a steady income when it comes to work. Companies need to adapt to new employee expectations, especially as other organizations are proactively adopting remote or hybrid work models, flexible work schedules, higher rates of pay or more. For roles that need to be filled, applicants are looking for new hire incentives that outweigh their current positions and are worthy of making the switch. With the power resting in employees and job applicants’ hands, the market will remain unequal.

Okay, wonderful. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “Top 5 Trends to Watch in the Future of Work?” (Please share a story or example for each.)

1. Remote and Hybrid Work: Over the past two years, remote and hybrid work models have become the preferred way to work. For employees, the option of where to work is increasingly table stakes when it comes to determining whether to remain at their current gig or company. For employers, the talent pool grows exponentially when businesses hire based on skills rather than location. Because numerous organizations have already adopted a remote or hybrid work model, it is prompting other companies to follow suit or else they will lose talent and have difficulty rehiring.
2. Work Hours Flexibility: In addition to deciding where to work, employees want the flexibility in deciding when to work, giving them ways to build work around their lives and not the other way around. As one of the biggest trends in the Future of Work, employees who have flexibility in dictating their work schedules have better productivity, higher job satisfaction, and better employee well-being. Over time, employees will continue to demand and expect flexibility from their employers, until it becomes a workplace standard.
3. Employee Voice: With employee empowerment, comes a need for businesses to listen to and understand the needs and wants of their workforce. We saw how decisions made from the executive levels that did not incorporate employee feedback were met with backlash as businesses tried to force employees to return to the workplace or take pay cuts for working remotely. Workers are the most important asset of any business and so developing ways to listen to their needs, to drive the right resulting actions, and to put them at the center of business plans is essential for long-term success.
4. Mental Health: The ongoing conversation around the prioritization of mental health will continue to be a topic in the Future of Work. With celebrities and professional athletes publicly advocating for mental health, this issue has become destigmatized (and even normalized) in the workplace. Organizations are now offering mental health days, counseling services, and other benefits/resources aimed to support employee well-being in their personal and professional lives.
5. Employer Support: Employees are looking for more than a consistent paycheck. They need their organization to provide the right training and tools intended to foster career development internally. When companies invest in their staff and give them the support they need to succeed, workers will be more incentivized to stay.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how this quote has shaped your perspective?

What I always heard as a child, and something I have passed on to my own family and work colleagues is this: Opportunity comes through a combination effort and luck — and making your own luck takes effort. In our personal and professional lives, we need to set ourselves up for opportunities to happen. We need to always be learning new things, building our network of trusted connections, and embracing the discomfort that comes with change while we’re pushing on the boundaries of those “job descriptions” and “titles” that so often are allowed to define us, to define our limits. This mindset is one of the reasons I’m so excited about the shift in focus across the global labor market toward skills. It’s a great example of how you can help create your own luck through effort. By continuously growing and expanding your skillset, keeping your knowledge current, and cultivating your network, you can gain more agency over your career by ensuring that as opportunities do arise, you’ll be ready for them. If opportunities aren’t coming to you, blaze your own trail to those opportunities!

We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.

I’ve been really impressed by Shonda Rhimes — TV producer, screenwriter, and author. She’s intelligent, driven and ‘scrappy,’ not above taking whatever jobs she needed to when she was unemployed in Hollywood in her early days to keep in the game, but learning new skills along the way. Her passion, ability to create change and to drive the critical conversations that need to be had are all inspiring to me. She also just seems like she’d be a heck of a lot of fun to just hang with over a meal.

Our readers often like to follow our interview subjects’ careers. How can they further follow your work online?

You can follow my work at the links below:

• Oracle HCM Landing Page / Blog
• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this. We wish you continued success and good health.