Assess the impact of Information Technology on job skills and careers

Job skills and careers with IT

Most jobs today require that employees use or have access to some sort of technology. It seems to be the norm that employees have email addresses of the company in order to send and receive messages among customers and colleagues alike. Reports can now be distributed via softcopy with graphs and tables. The size of the reports can be compressed (zipped) and even password protected. Meetings can be conducted online using video, audio, and chat features, including the option to share documents

Loss of jobs The introduction of Information Technology has influenced the automation of many tasks. This has made the jobs of many employees redundant such as:

Typing pools: Secretaries were located in a central area typing documents using typewriters. Documents could not be saved and had to retyped if they were to be distributed to many people. The introduction of the word processor allowed documents to be saved and reduced the time spent retyping documents. The use of mail merge also simplified sending one document personalised to many people.

Accounting tasks: Gone are the days of clerks assigned to manually calculate and count out wages. Accounting programs now calculate the wages and in some cases employers deposit wages directly on the employees' bank accounts.

Typesetting for newspapers: there is no need for printers to manually typeset the newspaper pages. Many hundreds of thousands of people lost their jobs as these changes happened. Job loss is not pleasant; it affects one's self confidence and creates all kinds of stress and disruption in families and society in general.

Technology drives much of business these days and so most companies want workers with the basic skills to use it - typing for example or having the ability to use email. The use of these basic skills in the workplace is as important as reading and writing. Many people have found that their job has been changed because of the introduction of computers. Sometimes employees can perform the same tasks but by using a computer. Training has become a major money earner based on the many people who need to keep up to date with technology to maintain their jobs.

Telecommuting

Information Technology has changed how we work in a major way. Some business have disappeared, new ones have been created because of IT, while others have adapt to meet the challenges of new technologies. Telecommuting is a method of working from home.

Benefits and Challenges of Telecommuting for the Employee

Benefits for employee Ability to schedule you own working hours Save traveling time and costs Environmental benefits such as saving on gas and air conditioning at work Collaboration is better with an Internet connection

Challenges for employee Work place can contact you at any time It may be difficult to separate work from home life Employees may work even longer hours May miss the camaraderie and team spirit at work.

Benefits and Challenges of Telecommuting for the Employer

Benefits for employer Less office space

Challenges for employer Data security and confidentiality issues

Can employee skilled workers from anywhere in the world

Keep employees who relocate but want to remain with the business

may arise The business culture may be lost.

Use of Technology on Job Skills and Careers

Office employees Most office employees spent time typing correspondence using a typewriter. Any mistakes when typing were difficult to correct and most likely the page had to be retyped. Now, with IT, many documents can be kept in softcopy and edited easily. This saves time, and reduces wastage of paper. Office employees may now have different tasks such as arranging meetings and appointments, making travel arrangements and so on. Teachers In the Classroom Typically, teachers use word processors to prepare tests and class notes, presentation software (e.g. PowerPoint) to show notes and illustrations, spreadsheets (such as Excel) to record and calculate marks, as well as use the Internet to search for material to support the teaching activities. Interactive whiteboards are used in many classrooms. These whiteboards can connect to a computer, where students can interact with the board by using a special pen or their hands. Some teachers have access to a digital projector which helps students to see the presentation and what the teacher is explaining on the teacher's computer.

Computer rooms Students can use computer labs at schools to complete their school-based assessments. Teachers can also place exercises on the main server so that students can access these files to work with.

Medical Personnel Doctors and medical personnel use equipment in wards, laboratories, pharmacies and offices. Skilled personnel are needed to be able to enter, store, and access patient record systems, as well as interpret data and diagnose results from monitoring of vital signs, CAT scans (Computer Aided Tomography), MRI scanners (Magnetic resonance Imaging), ultrasounds, and X-rays.

Law enforcement Criminals make use of the very latest technology, and so law enforcement also uses technology to maintain law and order. Technology is used in analysing fingerprints taken from objects at the scene of a crime once they are scanned into a computer Technology is also used to analyse DNA found at a crime scene. These results can stored in a computer and are used to identify criminals. CCTV cameras (closed circuit television) are also placed in locations in and around cities, towns and main roads to monitor traffic flows and those breaking the law by speeding.

Movie industry Until recently, the only way films were distributed to cinemas all around the world was by physically transporting large film reels to each and every cinema. Now an alternative is appearing where the films are distributed as a digital file.

Banking Banking services are now offered in supermarkets, department stores and many more places where commodities are sold. Customers can also use online banking or use an Automatic Teller Machines or ATM, more recently called Automatic Banking Machines or ABM. The use of technology to enhance banking services has also attracted persons who attempt to fraudulently gain funds. 'Phishing' works mainly by email as an alarming email message appears in your inbox that your funds have been frozen or your account has been breached. Usually you are asked to log in to your account urgently. If you do log in, the criminal is able to access your password to withdraw your funds to another account.

Shopping Almost every item that you purchase in a shop has a barcode on it. With the use of technology, shoppers are able to use EPOS (Electronic Point

Of Sale) to pay for their shopping using a debit

or credit card instead of cash.

Travelling Travelers can easily book flights through a travel agent or better yet, do it themselves very easily online. Technology is now integrated into electronic parking at the airport, reading flight information sent to your mobile phone, airport check-in, even baggage handling and passport security. A luggage label with a barcode is attached to each suitcase or bag. The label also has a bar code which contains your flight information. As the suitcase moves along the conveyor belt, the barcode is scanned and automatically routed to the correct area for loading onto your flight. Automation of baggage handling has reduced the workforce in this area. Passport Security Passport used to be purely paper documents with basic personal details and a photograph. Recently, each new passport contains an embedded microchip containing biometric details of the owner's face and a complete history

of his or her travels. This is more secure and has allowed customs and immigration personnel to speed up the process in airports.