Digital jobs of the future: virtual clutter organiser

Taking that role to the next level of specialisation in the future will be the ‘virtual clutter organiser' - someone who helps us organise our electronic lives.

This role has been defined in a report published this month by Fast Future Research that identifies new jobs that will be in demand from 2020 to 2030. Driven by continuing rapid growth in use of the Internet and increasingly complicated and connected mobile devices, it's predicted that virtual clutter organising will emerge as a profession by 2015.

Virtual clutter organisers will look after our email, make sure our data is stored properly, and manager our electronic passwords and profiles.

This is not a job for a glorified admin assistant - an IT background is needed. As the Fast Future report states, "A Virtual Clutter Organiser will typically be an expert in data management, security and networking and operate in three different ways - offering a downloadable solution to reside on your electronic devices, providing an online Software as a Service (SaaS) solution and delivering a totally personalised service managing your data for you.

"....They scan everything, work through your emails, documents and online registrations and create a data management framework to hold your electronic information. They would install routines that guide the user to ensure data is stored properly as it is created and encourage deletion of redundant data."

I think this type of role will become indispensible to people, as it will help reduce the stress associated with information overload. Mind you, people will have to change their views on privacy, as they will be letting a stranger access some of the most sensitive and financially intimate parts of their lives.

And although virtual clutter organisers rely heavily on automated tools, it will require a real live person to interpret, analyse, consult and execute, so it's a job that will offer long-term prospects.