Industrial job descriptions of the future

Following our recent look at the skills gap in 2025, we sat down as a team to discuss what we thought industrial job descriptions of the future might look like, the expectations of these new roles, and the potential applications. A lot of the ‘future skills’ we explored can already be seen in today’s operations or easily adapted from other job roles, showing why an amazing career within industry should be explored even if your experience is from other sectors.

1. Robot personal trainer
   Are you ready to build the next step in industrial robotics? We are looking for an experienced robotics professional to lead the training at our award-winning robot gym. You will be responsible for setting the training schedules, building virtual environments, and most importantly taking that data and transferring it into real-world applications.

   This role is a perfect representation of the convergence of IT and OT, combining experience in AI training alongside hands-on robotic deployment. Your work will ensure that the next generation of robotics will operate at peak performance before even being delivered to customers, supporting businesses with trusted automation and the sector with operational excellence. You should apply for this role if you are passionate about technology, have experience in either an IT or an OT environment, and looking for a secure career with tremendous growth potential.

   Key responsibilities
   – Design and manage virtual training environments
   – Use AI simulations to stress-test robot performance
   – Identify performance-improving opportunities
   – Collaborate with engineers to transfer digital skills to the physical space

2. AI Officer
   AI-use within industry has evolved rapidly and will continue to do so. It is common to see AI optimising the entire manufacturing supply chain, providing immense potential for businesses to unlock efficiency within existing assets and streamlining operations to support the expertise of the human operator. This has created the need for a dedicated AI Officer, responsible for overseeing all AI interactions within an industrial process.

   The role is for an executive-level leader responsible for setting AI-strategy, reviewing solutions, overseeing interactions and implementations across the organisation. The AI Officer will ensure that AI is employed ethically and sustainably, in line with the company’s values. The most important responsibility will be as the trusted source of information, acting as the expert interpreter to the ever-growing amount of data AI will produce.

   Key responsibilities
   – Oversee AI-driven decisions
   – Develop the AI strategy for the entire company
   – Review AI solutions
   – Review AI risks
   – Ensure all AI-driven activities meet strict regulations

3. Human-Augmented Factory Control Operator
   Wearable technology has continued to advance, even to the point of chips being surgically implanted directly to the brain to allow for the next-level of human-machine interfacing. As a human-augmented factory operator (or Cybernetic Plant Operator?) you will manage complex manufacturing processes through direct neural interfaces. As an enhanced human, you will seamlessly interact with automation software and hardware, reacting to issues faster than ever before by removing manual input from the equation.

   This role sits at the pinnacle of human and machine interaction, changing the way assets ‘think’ about optimisation by responding intuitively to human oversight. Industrial assets can join the conversation, using data to ‘speak’ with the operator in simple terms, leveraging invaluable human experience alongside cutting-edge technology.

   Key responsibilities
   – Manage the mind-machine control system (experience with brain-computer interfaces)
   – Ensuring the safety of the factory environment for all operators
   – Leading on optimisation by collaborating directly with assets

4. Interplanetary logistics manager
   Logistics is a crucial element of every supply chain and as humanity ventures beyond Earth, that chain is going to get much longer. We are recruiting an experience logistics professional to apply their knowledge to the complex role of interplanetary logistics. Applicant must have experience in industrial logistics, and be familiar with collaborating across multiple entities for the most profitable outcome. Autonomous space cargo systems, interplanetary delivery times, resource allocation, and supply-chain forecasting will all be your responsibility.

   This role is perfect for logistics professionals who have an interest in space exploration, space experience is not necessary. There will be an extensive training programme to capture your experience from Earth and apply that to the high-stakes sector of space.

   Key responsibilities
   – Resource planning, allocation, and delivery schedules
   – Management of autonomous systems in transit
   – Supply-chain forecasting
   – Risk mitigation

5. Robot recycler (humaniser)
   As the industrial sector reaches 100% circularity for robotic assets, we are inviting applicants to the position of Robot Recycler. Your role will lead the sustainability charge by ensuring that all high-value assets are either broken down into components that can be refurbished, recycled and reused, or repurposing assets to serve a new purpose or application. Occasionally this role includes re-training robotic systems to introduce the human interaction now expected of next-generation machinery. This will involve converting systems to operate with natural language speech and response or introducing new vocabulary if a robot will be serving an entirely new sector. Our company recently took on a contract to repurpose robots for the healthcare sector for applications like medicine distribution, patient care, entertainment and first aid.

   We are looking for a passionate robotics expert with a long career in industry. You shouldunderstand the nuances of processes, and be eager to deploy your knowledge in a new exciting sector where new regulations mean there can be zero waste from robotics assets, and which is set to grow rapidly in a sustainability-driven world.

   Key responsibilities:
   – Review traditional robotics processes and develop repurposing strategies
   – Understand limitations and opportunities for legacy assets
   – Work alongside both IT and OT professionals for the best results
   – Actively seek out new applications/sectors that are lower in robot maturity

These imaginary job descriptions, while fun and sometimes outlandish, do show how the base level of skills already exists within the workforce. A lot of the responsibilities and activities will resonate with current OT professionals, whose job roles are already morphing as digitalisation advances.

Looking at the present day, there’s an abundance of skilled professionals seeking the next step in their career who may not even consider an OT role, despite its competitive salaries and opportunities to work with the very latest in digital technology and problem-solve in a dynamic environment. Another factor that’s important for the next-generation workforce is that its members are coming from a position of digital-understanding, ready to interact with data to better this crucial sector.

While some aspects of our future job roles might seem fanciful or exaggerated, but other aspects are already a major part of people’s day jobs right now.