Identifying Future Employment Trends and Skills in the Mining Sector in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan’s intention to become one of the 30 most developed countries by 2050 depends on its ability to maintain medium and long-term development, especially in terms of creating highly qualified human capital alongside the application of scientific approaches for selecting professions and developing labor
skills. Kazakhstan’s mining sector, as one of the key industries, is in high demand for qualified and skilled personnel due to technological breakthroughs, though the industry suffers from a skills imbalance and a high risk of staff shortages. This study aims to analyze the creation of practical tools for predicting new skills and competencies, as well as new professions in the mining industry, exploring
and further identifying the skills and competencies that are likely to be promising in the next five to ten years. This study uses mixed-methods inclusive of two semi-structured interviews, conducted with top management field experts, as well as survey questionnaires distributed to 133 stakeholders. Results reveal that one of the useful tools for future skills identification is the Skills Technology Foresight (STF) methodology which is implemented using the Delphi method. Findings suggest that, in the model of professional competencies, the highly-demanded skills will be leadership, stress tolerance, and the learning ability of future specialists. In terms of thinking skills, analytical, system, and design thinking
are considered to be most popular. However, it is essential to consider the problem more broadly and to continue to clarify professions and competencies in a narrower aspect, since the technological processes in the mining sector are various and it is advisable to hold additional foresight sessions.