IGTA Journal - Autumn 2017

Disruption or continuation? Evolution or revolution? Are robots about to steal your job? I don’t think so. They will come and do part of your job. However, not all tasks and certainly not immediately. When baby-boomers were young, they thought cars would fly in the year 2000 and they aren’t still flying… although it will come by 2020, as we heard. Is it a threat or an opportunity? It depends on what you’ll make out of it. For example, block chain and derived technologies will enable new solutions, offer more disintermediation of banks and increase productivity, reduce cost and increase transparency. They will even be applied to State functions and services, in some specific cases. What should we do to remain optimum, to face technological challenges and to adapt our function to future requirements? We need to be agile, to be (more) curious about new solutions, to be pro-active (rather than retroactive) and to be pioneers, instead of conservators. One thing is certain: things won’t be the same and will keep changing at a faster pace, no doubt! We should be prepared to run faster and therefore we should workout now. “The better is ahead” wrote a famous novelist. Let’s take the best of our challenging future and become modern treasurers. “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” (Alvin Toffler) IGTA eJournal | Autumn 2017 | 47