The Internet, he says, has triggered the first industrial revolution in history to be led by the young who, unencumbered by families and mortgages, and able to learn and relearn faster, are best suited to rapid change. Although rapid change is now accepted as the norm, there appeared to be few portents of such upheaval when the baby boomers were at school or attending tertiary institutions. So don't talk to them about being able to cope with change. The student loan scheme, introduced in 1992, changed the rules. But good decisions depend on foresight, and even experts say crystal ball-gazing about the shape of the job market is perilous.
Competition is greater but so are opportunities.
Employment growth in service industries, such as wholesale and retail trade, transport and communication, business services, and community and personal services, has been rising for the last 15 years, while in manufacturing and agriculture it has been declining. Numbers of traditional blue-collar jobs have been declining, and those that remain often require the use of technology alongside manual tasks. Work patterns show a move towards more knowledge-based, less manual and routine work, and increased use of automation and computerisation. People are increasingly mobile across national borders, and flows of people will be important to economies as knowledge begins to rule the roost. Four out of five people are now employed in the private sector.