As automation and digitalization become the new norm throughout the industry, the workforce's skillsets must evolve to best use technology to its advantage, according to Brent Kedzierski, manager of manufacturing, learning global portfolios and innovation for Shell Downstream. This new norm, he said, requires individuals to be more astute in how they analyze, synthesize and evaluate information -- like it or not.
"When you go to your plant or your site, in whatever job you have, you're looking at drones, sensors and digital analytics," Kedzierski said. "What those things are doing are things humans used to do: gathering information, analyzing, decision-making and response selection."
Rather than being threatened by the potential loss of humanity within the workforce, Kedzierski encouraged individuals to consider robotics, artificial intelligence, and overall cyber-connectivity as "a new entrance into the workforce."
"Don't look at it as something bad," Kedzierski said in a presentation at the recent IoT in Oil & Gas Conference held in Houston. "Look at it as how we, as human beings and organizations, can blend and actually make a more human workforce."
Kedzierski noted interaction among workers has decreased -- due, in part, to the heightened pace of the industry.
"We don't spend enough time talking and listening to one another," he said. "We don't spend enough time with emotional intelligence because we're so hurried."
Digitalization and automation, he said, actually allow workers "to be a bit more human" and focus on relationships.
"If you want to be more successful in the future, be more human," he said. "Be more empathetic so people will want to work with you and want a relationship with you."
The connected environment and the next job currency
At Shell, Kedzierski said, learning capability is viewed as a competitive advantage for the energy transition, so the company actively strives to equip its staff with learning and performance support solutions faster than the rate of change around them.
"The reason we've got to do this is that perceptions and expectations are changing rapidly," he explained.
A connected learner, he said, is untethered, empowered and collaborative. Connected learners use social media, immersive technologies, and other tools to learn.
"People don't want to be tied down to their personal computer or their desk," he said.
The connected worker, therefore, embodies the full relationship workers have with the information they need to do their jobs, Kedzierski continued.
"The future of work depends on human growth and development," he said. "How do you think about connecting your environment? It is not just about wearables, smartphones or connected products."
Likening the concept to an equation, Kedzierski said "process plus assets plus people" equals the connected plant.
"Together, these empower workers and improve safety, reliability and operational performance," he said. "We know that in the future, and I know that at Shell, if humans are in the future, we're going to have to continuously grow.
"That's our future, along with data. People skills are our next job currency."
As automation and AI technologies progress, people will continue to work with their hands, "but not as much," Kedzierski said.
"We have them working with their heads, and we're going to increase that," Kedzierski concluded. "But what the intent is now is we want to engage people more with their hearts as they form a new relationship in this cyber/physical connected world with people, machines, data, intelligence and as they rethink how they work."