Presentation

W-Shift in a nutshell

W-Shift is a non-for-profit initiative led by Wael Mohamed and Fadwa Chaker
W-Shift (pronounced We Shift): A series of professional videos that aims at supporting the upskilling and reskilling of young people. The videos focus specifically on decoding global macro and micro trends (climate change, artificial intelligence, sustainable finance, the future of work…) and shedding light on related career opportunities for the youth
W-Shift’s core content is based on 15min interviews with international experts. The interview is preceded by an introduction and followed by a wrap-up
W-Shift is distributed through social media platforms
W-Shift is supported by NHS Marketing agency and Tamkine Foundation

Context

It goes without saying that the only constant in this world has always been change. However, the speed, scale and complexity of changes over the past two decades have been unprecedented in human history. The frequent economic crises, the technological and industrial revolution, pandemics, the climate threat and the questioning of globalization as well as the paradigms of liberalism generate structural transformations that blur our mental patterns and make us uncomfortable in our relationship with the present and the future.

Young people in the global south are particularly affected by these changes, especially those who are about to enter the labor market or those who are still looking for interesting career paths. In such a short time, the paradigms governing the job’s market and the economy at large have been seriously disrupted. Unfortunately, we refer to this generation as the NINJA generation (No-Income, No-Jobs, No-Assets). It is also true that this generation finds it more challenging to start a professional career and therefore is under greater pressure in the face of uncertainty. Despite the apparent complexity, the current situation presents enormous opportunities for those who understand the underlying trends and know how to take advantage of new possibilities. For example, distance work has opened up opportunities for freelancers to provide services for other countries while being at home, something that was limited just a few years ago. Another example is the availability of distance education platforms with high quality content and affordable costs that offer extraordinary learning opportunities. Finally, marketplaces have enabled resourceful young people to earn their living by trading on the internet with very little capital.

Concept of the videos

Every challenging situation presents threats opportunities that cannot be leveraged without an understanding of the trends shaping the world. For example, a young professional handling administrative tasks in a bank’s back office is very likely to face challenges in his career given the digital transformation of the financial sector. This change, however, opens doors to new career opportunities if he/she capitalizes on his/her experience and invests in IT skills. A recent report from the World Economic Forum indicates that one in two employees will need “reskilling” and that this investment should be borne in part by the latter. The same report indicates that over a period of five years, 40% of the skills required for the exercise of a job should be updated.

Target population

The concepts presented above obviously apply to a large segment of the population, however, focusing on the youth is dictated by the following considerations:

– In the Global South, they represent a large part of the population;

– They need it more than the older ones;

– They are flexible flows and open to change;

– The educational world does not prepare them properly for this situation (academic courses are designed according to old paradigms).

Structure of the videos

The show will invite international experts to discuss economic or technological trends shaping the world. Example of topics include:

– Alignment of finance with sustainable development;

– Artificial intelligence and its impact on banking careers;

– Artificial intelligence, drones and the evolution of agriculture;

– Remote work and implications on the job market;

– The evolution of customer relationship professions;

– E-Commerce and transformation of retail;

– Crypto currencies;

– Renewable energies;

– Digitalization of medicine.

The program sequence is as follows:

Introduction of the chosen topic (2 min)
Interview with the expert (15 min)
Wrap-up (3 min)

About W-Shift logo

The hexagon represents movement, it can also evoke the collective. It is a unifying form! The choice of this form can also refer to the different facets of the guests or of a subject that can be discovered during the interview. Finally, Magenta is a powerful, dynamic color with great potential for action.

The team

Wael Mohamed : Leader of the initiative
Fadwa Chaker: Scientific advisor
Anis Benhlal: Digital Marketing advisor
Mehdi Tamli: Digital Marketing advisor