Demand for ICT skills and workers is increasing as the disruptive impact of digital technologies spreads across the Australian economy. To position the economy to take full advantage of the opportunities presented by this digital disruption, we must ensure that the Australian workforce is equipped with the ICT skills required for businesses to innovate and grow. While ICT education, such as introducing coding in schools, will facilitate this in the long run, our greatest source of skills right now is the existing workforce. As such, developing the digital skills of both existing ICT workers and the broader Australian workforce is an important factor in ensuring that there is an adequate supply of ICT skills in a growing digital economy.

Source:  ACS (2016) Australia’s Digital Pulse: developing the digital workforce to drive growth in the future

Deloitte Access Economics Pty Ltd. p68

What you must do:

1. choose one of the ‘digital disruptions’ below:

Image adapted from: ACS (2016) Australia’s Digital Pulse: developing the digital workforce to drive growth in the future Deloitte Access Economics Pty Ltd. p11

2. Write a Report that includes:
   1. A description/explanation of the technology you have chosen

[15 marks]

1. How the technology could disrupt the current way society functions (eg what types of organisations will be affected; what types of professions or jobs will be affected; how will ‘ordinary’ people be affected)

[20 marks]

To complete this part, you can use the Ethical matrix included as Appendix A

1. Identify what risks and opportunities the technology provides

[20 marks]

To complete this part, you can use the SocialOpportunity/Risk matrix included as Appendix B

1. Identify what ethical responsibilities the existing ICT workforce has to support the integration of these technologies into businesses and daily life

[15 marks]

1. What recommendations could you make to minimise the disruption these technologies could

[15 marks]

3. In addition to the marks assigned to sections of the Report:
   1. You will be marked for professional formatting, spelling and grammar

[10 marks]

1. You will be evaluated on the relevance and formatting of your references

[5 marks]

4. Submit to LMS by the due date.

Resources

You can use any you find, but, as a start, this might be useful:  https://futureoflife.org/