tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post2226536725335605980..comments2024-03-17T00:10:44.022+00:00Comments on From Arse To Elbow: They Took Our JobsDavid Timoneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03568348438980023320noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-61617628826348846082017-03-29T18:27:42.883+01:002017-03-29T18:27:42.883+01:00The problem isn't accountants per se - i.e. pe...The problem isn't accountants per se - i.e. people who put together statutory accounts - but the wider ecosystem of corporate finance. SMEs don't use any more accountancy that they ever did, despite claims about red tape. It used to be said that the British Empire was a vast system of outdoor relief for the upper classes. In the postwar era, that function shifted to big business with finance as one of the chief vectors for the creation of supernumerary roles.<br /><br />The percentage of CFOs who attended private schools (70%) is much higher than that for CEOs (50%). This is ultimately because CFOs for PLCs need to "culturally fit" with banking and investment people in the City, which inevitably privileges people from a similar social background. This then filters down to next level roles within finance and to medium-scale businesses who want to be flotation-ready. Like hires like.<br /><br />As a self-appointed business aristocracy, it is in the interests of the finance crowd to both expand their numbers and to further the complexity of their roles in order to drive up remuneration. Though this is a drag on productivity (and explains in part the UK's poor record relative to others), it is tolerated by most business owners and institutional investors because they are part of the same milieu.<br /><br />Far from being a way of reducing the power of finance, IT was quickly absorbed into the empire. Early EDP functions were usually under the control of the CFO because they did number-crunching, and many business have stuck with this model. This has had the pernicious effect of channelling systems design into a finance-friendly paradigm, hence clunky ERP systems and rubbish BI.<br /><br />Pensions are just another form of wealth distribution in which the social bias is obscured by the temporal shift. We imagine we're saving (or paying tax) for our own pensions, but we're usually doing it for others. David Timoneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03568348438980023320noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-53591932690726198232017-03-29T17:34:33.228+01:002017-03-29T17:34:33.228+01:00It never ceases to amaze me that computers can rep...It never ceases to amaze me that computers can replace endless manufacturing jobs, even postmen, yet the number of accountants employed continues to rise.<br /><br />If computers can do one thing really really well it is easily adding things up across multiple dimensions!<br /><br />So the puzzle is why are there any accountants left?<br /><br />The more jobs that can be replaced by robots the better.<br /><br />The interesting thing is when watching the news they prattle endlessly on about people living longer therefore health provision under threat but never ever bring in the other side of the equation, rise in productivity, improvement in technology. The improvement in technology should have more than compensated for people living longer.<br /><br />The news never bring in this aspect because that would point to systematic failure, and the news are simply and nothing more than a brainwashing unit at the service of the ruling classHerbie Kills Childrennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-86837546138275093082017-03-27T10:23:07.077+01:002017-03-27T10:23:07.077+01:00Yes, I hadn't though that this might just be a...Yes, I hadn't though that this might just be a reflection of wanting to make a statement of position, of attitude, rather than be seriously discussion the issues.<br /><br />In that sense, it's rather like Rudd, who transparently knows nothing about encryption, striking a pose over WhatsApp. Mind you, it was also transparent that the editors of last nights BBC TV news didn't either. The "no safe space for terrorists" line had me morphing into Scotty shouting "it's against the laws of physics".gastro georgenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-36935510917676141602017-03-26T21:15:14.942+01:002017-03-26T21:15:14.942+01:00The fact that journalism on the subject of automat...The fact that journalism on the subject of automation treats robots and AI as interchangeable tells you that they are not interested in the particular impact of these technologies on the means of production but see them simply as the latest iteration of the general demand directed at labour: you must change to suit the needs of capital.David Timoneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03568348438980023320noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-23568681296204161372017-03-25T21:09:29.043+00:002017-03-25T21:09:29.043+00:00Given that a majority of jobs are probably superfl...Given that a majority of jobs are probably superfluous anyway, I suppose they'll just invent some more to replace the ones that are automated out of existence.<br /><br />I suspect a 20-hour week is perfectly plausible now if people really wanted it. Or alternatively, to paraphrase the Jameson quote from your recent tweet, it is easier to imagine the end of the world rather than the reduction in the hours of wage labour....Ben Philliskirknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-73007790407489496342017-03-25T20:14:23.003+00:002017-03-25T20:14:23.003+00:00Likewise, I'm sceptical. And I think there...Likewise, I'm sceptical. And I think there's a lot of confusion about what we're actually talking about. There's a lot of hype about AI, but that gets confused with big data and number/behaviour crunching, and that's not the same thing. Even with data that can be crunched, there would be a lot of problems with the quality of the data, and the compatibility of different datasets (as dsquared often mentions). And that's even before we start designing the software.<br /><br />Much of the hype has speculated on the automation of a lot of white collar jobs - accounting, solicitors, etc. While large manufacturers have made enormous strides in computerising their production and accounting systems, these have tightly defined scopes and are easily extensible across different manufacturers. I'm not sure that contract law, for example, would be handled so easily. I would have thought that even conveyancing, which on the surface is a routine operation, would have a vast number of potential inputs and exceptions - although maybe I should leave commenting too much on that to somebody in the industry.<br /><br />The one thing that IDS was apparently aware of with the implementation of Universal Credit is that it involves business transformation. I wonder how easy such transformations would be in the areas being speculated about.<br />gastro georgenoreply@blogger.com