Artificial intelligence has moved fast. Very fast. A few years ago, the conversation about AI replacing jobs felt like a thought experiment. Now it’s headline news, boardroom strategy and, for many people, a genuine source of anxiety.

The truth, as ever, is more nuanced than the headlines suggest. AI won’t wipe out the job market overnight, but it is reshaping it in ways that are already being felt, particularly in entry-level and administrative roles. Understanding which jobs face the most pressure and which are more resilient is essential knowledge for anyone thinking about their next career move.

This post breaks it all down clearly, so you can make informed decisions about where to focus your energy and how to position yourself for the future.

First, how big is this, really?

The numbers are striking. Goldman Sachs has estimated that around two-thirds of jobs in the US and Europe are exposed to some degree of AI automation, with up to 300 million full-time roles potentially affected globally. The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025, drawing on surveys of over 1,000 major employers, found that 41% of businesses plan to reduce their workforce as AI automates certain tasks, with the figure rising to 48% among US firms.

McKinsey’s most recent research goes further, suggesting that existing technology could already automate more than half of all US work hours. And by 2030, up to 30% of work hours across the US economy, and 27% across Europe, could be automated.

That sounds alarming. But here’s the important context: most experts are clear that this is a story of transformation, not apocalypse.

“We’re not looking at this famous ‘jobs apocalypse’ scenario. We need these what we call ‘human skills’, creativity, collaboration, resilience, agility. These become newly important.”

— Till Leopold, Head of Work, Wages and Job Creation, World Economic Forum

The same WEF report predicts 170 million new roles will be created by 2030, against 92 million displaced, a net gain of 78 million jobs. The disruption is real, but so is the opportunity.

Jobs most at risk

The roles most exposed to AI are those built around structured, repeatable tasks, the kind that AI systems are particularly good at handling: processing information, generating standard outputs and following defined rules. Broadly speaking, this means:

Administrative and data entry roles. This is where disruption is already most visible. Administrative support and data entry have seen a 45% reduction in hiring rates since 2022, driven largely by AI deployment. Goldman Sachs found that 46% of tasks in administrative sectors could become automated, the highest of any industry.

Customer service and call centres. Routine queries are increasingly handled by AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants. Jobs that involve answering repetitive questions or processing standard requests are at significant risk.

Basic content writing and copyediting. Generative AI has transformed this area faster than almost any other. While high-quality, strategic writing remains a human skill, high-volume or formulaic content is increasingly being automated.

Bookkeeping and basic accounting. AI is already handling routine financial processing, reconciliation, and reporting. More complex financial analysis and advisory work is far less exposed, but the entry-level end of the profession is under real pressure.

Legal research and paralegal work. Goldman Sachs estimated that 44% of tasks in the legal sector could be automated. Document review, contract analysis, and case research are areas where AI tools are already being deployed at scale.

Entry-level professional roles. Perhaps most significantly, the traditional career ladder is being disrupted from the bottom. Hiring has slowed for entry-level programmers, analysts and junior consultants, the very roles that have historically served as the training ground for more senior positions.

“Will accounting jobs, graphic design as they exist today still be around in five years? What we’re being told is very clearly, ‘No.’ A new sort of job that is basically an evolved version will.”

— Till Leopold, World Economic Forum

Jobs that are safer, and why

Not all roles are equally exposed. The jobs holding up best share a few important characteristics: they require physical presence in unpredictable environments, complex human judgement, emotional intelligence or deep trust relationships with another person. These are things AI genuinely cannot replicate.

Skilled trades. Plumbers, electricians, carpenters and other tradespeople work in endlessly varied, physically unpredictable environments. Goldman Sachs found that only 6% of tasks in construction and 4% in installation and repair work are vulnerable to automation. Demand in these sectors is also rising, particularly as infrastructure investment grows.

Healthcare workers. Nurses, carers, GPs, therapists and other healthcare professionals sit at the intersection of physical presence, emotional intelligence and complex clinical judgement. McKinsey notes that the vast majority of tasks carried out by nursing and care staff still require human qualities that machines cannot replicate. Ageing populations across the UK and Europe mean demand in this sector is growing, not shrinking.

Teachers and educators. Teaching is fundamentally relational. The ability to read a student’s expression, adapt in the moment, inspire curiosity, and build trust is beyond the reach of any current AI system. The WEF projects strong growth in education roles out to 2030.

Social workers and counsellors. Work that requires empathy, ethical judgement and the ability to navigate complex human situations is among the least exposed of all. These roles rely on trust, discretion and genuine human connection.

Creative directors, strategists and senior marketers. While AI can produce content, it cannot provide vision, cultural sensitivity, or brand judgement. Senior creative and strategic roles, where the job is to make big decisions, not execute routine tasks, are far more resilient.

Leaders and managers. Managing people, navigating complex stakeholder relationships and making judgement calls under uncertainty are capabilities that McKinsey identifies as remaining firmly in the human domain. The future of AI is about humans overseeing and orchestrating machines, not being replaced by them.

The middle ground: augmented, not replaced

For many professionals, the picture is neither ‘safe’ nor ‘at risk’, it’s somewhere in between. These are roles where AI is becoming a powerful tool that changes how the work is done, even if it doesn’t eliminate the job itself.

Think of solicitors who use AI to accelerate research but still provide counsel. Marketers who use AI to generate drafts but still make strategic decisions. Analysts who use AI to process data but still construct the narrative. In these roles, the people who thrive will be those who learn to work with AI effectively, using it to free up time for higher-value thinking.

McKinsey’s analysis found that demand for AI fluency has grown sevenfold since 2023, and it’s showing up in job postings across management, finance, marketing and education, not just in technical roles. This is perhaps the single most important trend to pay attention to.

“Any jobs involving routine, repetitive tasks are at risk. But AI will not eliminate them fully, rather it will lead to workplace transformation.”

— Tomasz Noetzel, lead author, WEF Future of Jobs Report 2025

What you should do now

If you’re feeling uncertain about where you stand, here’s a practical way to think about it.

Audit your own role. Which of your daily tasks are routine and repeatable? Which require genuine judgement, relationship-building or creativity? The more your work leans towards the latter, the more secure you are. If it leans towards the former, it’s worth thinking about how you can shift your focus.

Build AI literacy. You don’t need to become a developer. But understanding how to use AI tools effectively, and how to direct and evaluate their output, is fast becoming a baseline professional skill. This applies across almost every sector.

Invest in skills AI can’t replicate. Communication, leadership, empathy, complex problem-solving, creativity and relationship management are the skills the WEF identifies as growing in importance. These are worth deliberately developing, whatever your field.

Think carefully about how your CV is positioned. As the job market evolves, how you present your experience matters more than ever. Employers aren’t just looking for people who can do the job, they’re looking for people who can adapt, lead and bring genuine human value. A strong, strategically written CV makes exactly that case.

A final thought

The scale of change ahead is real, and it would be dishonest to pretend otherwise. But throughout history, technological disruption has consistently created new opportunities alongside the challenges it brings. The steam engine, the computer, the internet, each wave displaced some roles and created others.

What matters most right now is being clear-eyed about where things are heading, honest about the skills you have and the ones you need to develop, and proactive in how you present yourself to the world.

If you’d like help thinking through how to position your experience for the job market of today, and tomorrow, that’s exactly what we’re here for.

Sources

Goldman Sachs, ‘The Potentially Large Effects of Artificial Intelligence on Economic Growth’ (2023) https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/28/ai-automation-could-impact-300-million-jobs-heres-which-ones.html
World Economic Forum, Future of Jobs Report 2025 (January 2025) https://www.weforum.org/press/2025/01/future-of-jobs-report-2025-78-million-new-job-opportunities-by-2030-but-urgent-upskilling-needed-to-prepare-workforces/
McKinsey Global Institute, ‘Agents, Robots and Us: Skill Partnerships in the Age of AI’ (November 2025) https://www.mckinsey.com/mgi/our-research/agents-robots-and-us-skill-partnerships-in-the-age-of-ai
McKinsey Global Institute, ‘Generative AI and the Future of Work in America’ (2023) https://www.mckinsey.com/mgi/our-research/generative-ai-and-the-future-of-work-in-america
CNBC Make It: ‘As many as 41% of employers plan to use AI to replace roles’ (February 2025) https://www.cnbc.com/2025/02/26/as-many-as-41percent-of-employers-plan-to-use-ai-to-replace-roles-says-new-report.html