Continued market volatility has put constant pressure on individuals and businesses, not only in the UK but also worldwide. This strains resources, slows productivity and growth. Fortunately, the growing maturity and prevalence of common sense and balance among other reasons, makes our daily affairs or duties more bearable.
Feeling torn between the desire for more patience and more understanding and the need to figure out details, we see new ways of doing things, coping with reality, According to some, the prevalence of new technology including AI and Machine Learning (ML) have established ways that can help navigate uncertainty while accepting the unique complexities of life today. What do we need to trade in its place?
How do we choose the trends that align best with our needs? How do we develop a short and long term roadmaps, that align our living to evolving trends? How do we prepare the skills and organisational culture, where people and machines seamlessly collaborate? Is this possible or practical?
Technology and Change?
How do we stay ahead of the game by anticipating changes rather than succumbing to them, say ChatGPT, AI, and Automation.
“ChatGPT is a sibling model to instruct GPT which is trained to follow an instruction in a prompt and provides a detailed response”. The first peak of ChatGPT is coming directly to Windows 11- with no browser.
With AI we are told there are deeper ethical and moral concerns – since the AI models have neither?
Without delving into the “New Tech” suffice to state, we must be weary of where they are leading us?
The Tech sector has seen explosive growth in the past two years. The Pandemic saw a dramatic rise in the hybrid working model as employees left the office to work from home. This saw major firms like Amazon and Facebook hire thousands of workers, doubling their headcounts in a matter of months. Now with a potential recession looming, Tech companies are laying off workers. In the last year more than 70,000 people globally have been laid off by Big Tech Companies?
What has led to this shake up?
Rising inflation and rising interest rates drag on economic growth. Faced with this additional intense pressure on already stretched finances, UK wage growth has remained high in the three months, according to data from the UK Office of National Statistics (ONS).
“Pay and wages strikes” have continued “over the winter of discount,” with the latest Royal College of Nursing members rejecting, the pay offer agreed by their Union. There is talk of a demand of 35% increase, which the Government will hardly consider. Junior Doctors are on strike, but the big question is, “Will there be coordinated strikes” that threaten people’s lives?
Will inflation eat away at pay growth? “Who is the loser?”
When adjusted to inflation “Real Pay” fell by 2.3 %, while “Total Pay” fell 3%. CPI inflation has unexpectedly ticked up to 10.4% in February, after a fall in January 2023.
Economic uncertainty is weighing heavily on the labour market. UK economy has remained largely stagnant since the end of 2022. According to reports, GDP was “flat last month”. Though the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt expects the UK will avoid a recession this year, the IMF’s outlook is far less rosy. Indeed, the IMF expects the UK economy will shrink by 0.3% this year.
A bleak outlook awaits the Conservative Party as expected at the Local Government elections in May, with as many as 1000 Local Council lost.
