Video Interview: The impact of technology in career decisions

10/3/2018 The Pay Index

Interview between James Rust, Managing Founder of The Pay Index, and Anthony Harling, Founder and Director of Not Actively Looking, addressing the impact of technology within career decisions.

 

 

The impact of technology in career decisions from The Pay Index.

 

Anthony:

How do you see the impact of technology affecting us within our careers?

James:

One of the most important considerations is to understand if the company that you currently work for, or are considering working for, is a technology leader or a technology follower. Does it embrace technology or avoid it?

We’ve seen several examples, such as Amazon verses Woolworths or Blockbuster verses Netflix, where firms that have not embraced technology and have lost dominant positions in the market.

The key message is to ensure that the company you work for does not become another victim of the technological revolution.

It’s also essential to understand the impact technology will play within your specific role. How can it be used to make you / your role more efficient and effective? On the reverse, it’s essential to also consider if technology could threaten your role.

In summary, technology will be a vital component within any future career decisions you make.

 

Anthony:

What role do you envisage tools such as The Pay Index playing in terms of helping individuals and companies understand compensation?

James:

The Pay Index provides transparency, in terms of helping individuals to ensure they are being paid their market worth, but also giving companies a clearer idea as to what they should be paying to retain their top talent.

The main benefit for individuals is that it helps them to understand compensation trends, especially if they’re considering a new role in a different industry or geographical location.

From a corporate perspective, the ability to access senior executive compensation data is becoming more and more difficult, partly due to legislation changes (USA) but also due to the speed at which the market is moving (even at a senior level, new roles are being created all the time).

 

Anthony:

Are tools like The Pay Index helping to improve pay transparency?

James:

Absolutely. The data trends we are now seeing within The Pay Index highlight numerous examples where individuals who have remained in companies for a longer period of time have fallen behind the market average for their role. The Pay Index can help to provide individuals with the statistical data they require to rectify this and ensure they are not be undervalued.

From a corporate perspective, the data is very useful for companies hiring outside of their core areas of expertise, for example when hiring cyber security professionals or out of industry skills, as it equips hiring teams with essential compensation data trends they require to make the right hiring decisions.

 

Anthony:

Overall, are firms being more rigid or flexible with executive compensation?

James:

Overall, larger companies are having to work within greater regulatory parameters which is restricting the flexibility of compensation. However, we must not forget which in turn is helping to improve pay parity.

However, it does vary from sector to sector. You can expect smaller companies and emerging industries to offer greater flexibility, quite often because they are creating roles for the first time and the skills and experience they require may not fit into a traditional role or structure.

 

Summary & further reading:

The key message that underlined the entire interview is that technology will only continue to permeate and influence every part of our career. There is no way to escape it or sidestep it. Embrace it, accept it and learn how to utilise it for your own advantage.

To read more on the rise and fall of Woolworths and related businesses, please refer to these articles:

 

In a similar way, you can learn more about Blockbuster’s demise and the rise of Netflix here:

 

Learn more about Not Actively Looking via the following links below:

 

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