Future of Work, Future is Now!
The digital transformation of society and the economy is happening now - not by choice but rather as a necessary evolution. However, changes in the digital age are not just about the arrival of new technological solutions. It is also important to focus on how these changes will affect people and social processes.
The first annual PPRC conference “The Future of Work – The Future is Now!”, held in Belgrade from October 23-24 in 2018, set the stage for a critical examination of the key drivers transforming the world of work and economy in Serbia within the context of the digital revolution. As a developing country grappling with three industrial revolutions at once with uneven progress across companies, sectors, and economies, Serbia is strongly motivated to look into the potential of the knowledge-based economy to deliver a more equitable and desirable economic growth and achieve sustainable development. At the conference we explored the following issues:
- How can the design, development, and deployment of the knowledge-based economy drive increased national productivity and secure a quantum leap in the economy and well-being of the society?
- How do technological advances influence the relationship between workers and traditional employment structures? What does the legacy of Decent Work Agenda mean for the present and for the future?
- What kind of educational policies are necessary to prepare agents of change for a knowledge-based economy?
- How can governments, businesses, and civil society work together to develop a responsible approach to the risks that result from the digital revolution? How can the joint evidence-based policy-making be promoted and utilized? What is the best course for introducing ethics into the technological and societal agenda?
The aim of the conference “The Future of Work in Serbia – The Future is Now” was to open a discussion about the preconditions and the opportunities for development of a knowledge-based economy in Serbia embedded in a decent work agenda. This was achieved through the dialogue between leading European experts in the field, as well as Serbian policymakers, the academia, national companies already mastering the digital change, the unions, and the civil society representatives. For more information please see the Conference Programme.