How Places of the Future are Fueling Jobs of the Future

On March 16th, The Information hosted a Video Summit on how places of the future are fueling jobs of the future in partnership with Cognizant. From Sacramento to Toronto, Lisbon to virtual space, where we live and work will impact job opportunities over the next decade.

“You don't necessarily have to go to Silicon Valley to make things happen,” said Sinead Bovell, founder of WAYE, a consulting firm and publisher. “We're seeing a lot of young entrepreneurs building from where they are. COVID has only accelerated that. In the millennial and the Gen Z segment, we're starting to see [that] we don't need to have that magnet to one city or one state per se, where you are as good enough to where you need to be.”

While tech can be distributed and has enabled remote work, cities across the world are emerging as leaders in specific industries with local expertise.

“Each one of these places does seem to anchor on either one of the technologies or technological landing grounds driving the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” said Robert Hoyle Brown, Vice President of Cognizant’s Center for the Future of Work.

One example is Nairobi, Kenya, which has become a leader in mobile banking and fintech despite the fact they have only had high speed internet for 10 years. Technology is fueling the growth of less developed countries.

“They’ve [Nairobi] grown so much in the fintech realm, and that’s going to help them play catch up to some of the larger economies all over the world,” said Desmond Dickerson, Senior Manager of Cognizant’s Center for the Future of Work.

To read Cognizant’s “21 Places of the Future” report, click here.