"Not many other industries can embrace the future so holistically: We have battery chemists, electrical engineers, manufacturing experts, software developers and social media operators all in one industry, working at making our lives easier and more productive."
Ten years from now the workplace may depend less on location than connectivity, such as eco-friendly workstations that offer collaborative environments catering to technology developers.
GM employees of various experience levels and backgrounds see these as the Top 10 jobs of 2025.
1. Electrical engineers - Battery, hybrid and plug-in vehicles are becoming mainstream. Over the next ten years, more engineers will be needed to explore and develop electrified vehicles.
2. Analytics expert - Data is everywhere and can help diagnose what in a car needs attention before it becomes a problem and help pick the best route to a destination.
3. Interaction designers - Operating all the technology in the car needs to be designed with an artistry that makes it easy to use.
4. Web programmer - Software is playing an increasingly important role in the vehicle, and coders and developers are only going to be in more demand.
5. Autonomous driving engineer - GM envisions a world without crashes and a key step toward that direction is the introduction of vehicle-to-vehicle technology on the 2017 Cadillac CTS that allows the car to 'talk' to other cars that are equipped with V2V technology. After that will come Super Cruise, a semi-autonomous driving technology in the Cadillac CT6 range-topping luxury sedan. Within these fields there will be sensor experts, radar developers and all types of engineers needed to make these vehicles and those that follow them a reality.
6. Customer care experts - It's not just about cars being made by car people who deliver them to the masses. With social media, direct interaction with companies big and small is direct and near instantaneous.
7. Sustainability integration expert - A variety of environmentally friendly programmes - from using alternative energy sources like solar and wind - to just finding ways to use less of everything opens employment opportunities for people who understand the best ways to apply these goals to the business.
8. Industrial engineer - The future for this position will challenge engineers to build complex vehicles in ways that are sustainable and efficient.
9. 3D printing engineer - The uses and capabilities of 3D printing in the development, design and engineering world are just beginning to be fully realised. A part mock-up that once took weeks to create can now be printed in a matter of hours.
10. Alternative propulsion engineer - Diesels, battery electrics, fuel cells.
