Asia Society, J.P. Morgan to hold last leg of One Step Ahead Series in Manila

MANILA, Philippines — What challenges and opportunities will the Asia-Pacific region face in this age of automation and digitization? How can employers, policymakers, and educators confront the new socio-economic realities accompanying Asia Pacific’s vast digital transformation?

These key questions and more will be discussed during the last leg of the One Step Ahead Series on June 4 at The Peninsula Manila. Organized by the Asia Society and multinational investment bank J.P. Morgan, the event will bring public, private, and civil society leaders to discuss the theme, “Rethinking the Future of Work to Promote Inclusive Growth in Asia Pacific.”

The One Step Ahead Series, launched in 2014, is a collaboration that combines Asia Society’s mission to educate with J.P. Morgan’s long-standing commitment to invest in communities. Distinguished experts and academics converge to investigate critical issues affecting competitiveness and growth of cities in Asia. Previous forums were hosted in Hong Kong, Singapore, Mumbai and Beijing.

For the Manila leg, key panel sessions will be on the following topics:

• Unleashing the Potential of Inclusive Growth in the Future of Work: Findings from Research and the Field

• The Future of Work Ecosystem — Aligning Supply and Demand for an Inclusive Labor Market

• Reskilling and Upskilling — Reinventing Education and Training for the Workforce of the Future

Panelists for the Manila forum include leaders from the International Labor Organization, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation Development, as well as McKinsey and Company associate partner Boris Van, LinkedIn regional sales leader Atul Harkisanka, NCAER director general Dr Shekhar Shah, Bainian Vocational School board member Sabina Brady, and SkillsFuture Singapore deputy chief executive Michael Fung. They will be joined by local leaders Ayala Corp. chairman and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, Department of Information and Communications Technology former undersecretary Monchito Ibrahim, and TESDA deputy director general Rosanna Urdaneta.

 “Technology brings rapid changes to all facets of our life, but more so in the area of work. We need to have these discussions on confronting innovations in automation, artificial intelligence and digitization so we are prepared to adapt,” Doris Ho, Asia Society Philippines chair, noted.