People are turning to robots to support their career development after the COVID-19 pandemic left them feeling lonely and disconnected from their own lives, according to a new study by Oracle and Workplace Intelligence, an HR research and advisory firm. The study of more than 1,000 employees, managers, HR leaders, and C-level executives in Singapore found that people all around the world have felt stuck in their personal and professional lives but are ready to regain control of their futures.

The Singapore workforce feels lonely, disconnected, and out of control

More than a year in lockdown and the continued uncertainty due to the pandemic has left many workers in emotional turmoil, feeling like their lives and careers are out of control.

• 84 percent of people have been negatively impacted by the last year, with many struggling financially (33 percent); lacking career motivation (29 percent); and suffering from declining mental health (26 percent).
• 68 percent found 2021 to be the most stressful year at work ever. More than half (58 percent) of people struggled with mental health at work more in 2021 than in 2020.
• The amount of people who feel little to no control over their personal and professional lives nearly doubled since the start of the pandemic. People noted they have lost control mainly over their futures (53 percent); personal lives (52 percent); and finances (50 percent).
• 82 percent of people feel stuck in their personal lives, feeling anxiety about their future (31 percent); trapped in the same routine (30 percent); and suffered financially (27 percent).
• However, on the upside, majority (77 percent) also felt that their companies were more concerned with protecting their mental health now than before the pandemic.

People are motivated to make changes, but are facing big challenges

Despite struggles over the last year, people are eager to make changes in their professional lives.

• 93 percent of people used the past year to reflect on their lives and 92 percent said the meaning of success has changed for them since the pandemic, with work-life balance (46 percent); mental health (42 percent); and workplace flexibility (41 percent) now top priorities.
• 85 percent feel stuck professionally, because they don’t have growth opportunities to progress their career (31 percent) and are too afraid to make a change out of fear of losing their jobs (25 percent).
• 78 percent of people say feeling stuck in their career has negatively impacted their personal lives as well by adding extra stress and anxiety (46 percent); contributing to feeling stuck personally (38 percent); and taking focus away from their personal lives (33 percent).
• 90 percent of people are ready to make a change, but 86 percent said they are facing major obstacles. The biggest hurdles include not feeling confident enough to make a change (28 percent); seeing no growth opportunities at their company (28 percent); not knowing what career change makes sense for them (27 percent); and financial struggles (27 percent).
• Going into 2022, professional development is top of mind with many willing to give up key benefits such as flexible work arrangements (62 percent); vacation time (57 percent); and even monetary bonuses (53 percent) or part of their salary (49 percent) for more career opportunities.
• However, 93 percent of the Singapore workforce are not satisfied with their employer’s support. They are looking for organizations to provide more learning and skills development (43 percent); opportunities for new roles within their company (37 percent); and more workplace flexibility (37 percent).

Employees in Singapore are hungry for new skills and turning to technology for help

To retain and grow top talent amidst changing workplace dynamics, employers need to pay attention to employee needs more than ever before and leverage technology to provide better support.

• 92 percent of people want technology to help define their future by identifying skills they need to develop (45 percent); providing next steps to progress towards career goals (41 percent); and recommending ways to learn new skills (40 percent).
• 85 percent of people would make life changes based on robot recommendations.
• 90 percent believe robots can support their careers better than a human by giving unbiased recommendations (42 percent); finding new jobs that fit their current skills (40 percent); or quickly answering questions about their career (38 percent).
• People believe humans still have a critical role to play in career development and believe humans are better at providing support by offering advice based on personal experience (47 percent); identifying strengths and weaknesses (47 percent); and looking beyond a resume to recommend roles that fit personalities (46 percent).
• 92 percent of people believe their company should be doing more to listen to their needs and 64 percent are more likely to stay with a company that uses advanced technologies like AI to support career growth.

Supporting Quotes

“The past year and a half changed how we work including where we work and, for a lot of people, who we work for. While there have been a lot of challenges for both employees and employers, this has been an opportunity to change the workplace for the better,” said Dan Schawbel, managing partner, Workplace Intelligence. “The results clearly show that investment in skills and career development is now a key differentiator for employers as it plays a significant role in employees feeling like they have control over their personal and professional lives. Businesses that invest in their employees and help them find opportunities will reap the benefits of a productive, engaged workforce.”

“The pandemic has set a new course for the future of work. Surprisingly, despite feeling stuck in their lives, anxious about their future, trapped in the same routine, and more loneliness than ever before,  employees  are feeling more empowered. They have found their voice and are not hesitating to speak up what success means to them, ” said Shaakun Khanna, Head of HCM Cloud Applications Strategy, Asia Pacific, Oracle. “With these changing priorities, organisations need to do more to attract and retain talent. They need to double down their efforts to help employees identify and develop new skills, and provide personalized career journeys to put them in control of their careers once again.”

“It’s not unreasonable to want to be in the driver’s seat of your own life. Employers should make it as easy as possible for employees to be happy, feel fulfilled, and achieve their version of success with the help of the right technology and right tools,” added Shaakun.

"Peoples' anxiety and stress level increase as they discover and adapt to unknown changes. Remote working and limited physical interactions further restricted understanding and information sharing, resulting in lower engagement, collaborations and trust,” said Peter Leow, Director, Human Resources from The Salvation Army, Singapore, Malaysia and Myanmar Territory with Thailand. “Robots and AI could help bridge some of these gaps to connect and strengthen interest and relations, improve work cultures through crowd sharing of information with efficacy. It enables empowerment, exploration and experimentation within a safe and controlled enviroment with transparency and consistency to enhance creativity, efficiency and effectiveness!”

Learn more about this global report here:

• Global findings – https://www.oracle.com/human-capital-management/ai-at-work/
• APAC findings – https://www.oracle.com/apac/human-capital-management/ai-at-work/
• Singapore findings – https://www.oracle.com/asiasouth/human-capital-management/ai-at-work/

Methodology

Research findings are based on a survey conducted by Savanta, Inc. across the US, the UK,  UAE, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Brazil, India, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and  Australia between July 27 – August 17, 2021. For this survey, 14,639 (out of which 1,013 are from Singapore) C-suite executives, HR leaders, managers and full-time employees were asked general questions about the impact of COVID-19 on the workplace, AI and career development, and AI adoption at the workplace. The study targeted full-time employees who are 22 to 74 years of age. Respondents were recruited through a number of different mechanisms, via different sources to join the panels and participate in market research surveys. All panelists have passed a double opt-in process and complete on average 300 profiling data points prior to taking part in surveys. Respondents are invited to take part via email and are provided with a small monetary incentive for doing so. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 0.8 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.