Careers were a natural consequence of the industrial era factory model. A career, at least initially, was a tool for an organisation to retain the best talent. It also gave the worker a sense of purpose and progress as well as greater remuneration and status.    

Increasing disruption is making the talent demands of the market less predictable and thus businesses will be more tactical in respect of their talent requirements. This reality will make career management something of an inconvenience for talent managers.

The arrival of the gig economy, algos and robots will add further pressure to drop the notion of a career.

What was once a career for life, and for many is now a life of careers, will morph into a life of gigs for a variety of talent buyers. And these gigs will increasingly be more parallel than serial in their sequencing.

Sample subthemes to explore include:

• Is the 9 to 5 model over?
• To what extent will work-life balance become a relic of the industrial era?
• How does one navigate the post-industrial world from a professional perspective?
• What are the skills needed to thrive going forward? Should one focus on being a leader, manager or the talent?