If German office workers aren't feeling a bit nervous about losing their jobs, maybe they should be. More than 100,000 administrative jobs in the private sector will disappear over the next five to 10 years as companies move to reduce operating expenses by automating and optimizing numerous administrative processes with the help of modern IT systems, in particular ERP (enterprise resource planning) software, according to a study released Tuesday by the German subsidiary of the consultancy A.T.Kearney Inc.
The industrialization of business administrations is an ongoing process that has had an impact on numerous industries for the past 20 years, and that process is being accelerating through the implementation of ERP systems, according to the study's author, Stephan Frettlöhr, a principle consultant at A.T.Kearney.
As a result, the number of employees in administrative positions in key German industries, such as car manufacturing, energy, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, will decrease from around 152,000 today to 34,000 by 2016, at the latest, according to A.T.Kearney. Nearly 50,000 jobs could disappear in the short term, it said.
The sector to shed the largest number of jobs will be car manufacturing with a 41 percent reduction, followed by the utilities sector (including energy) with a 23 percent drop in administrative positions.
Growing pressure on profit margins and globalization are forcing German companies to optimize their business processes at an accelerated pace, according to the study. Germany is in the middle of a structural change similar to the one it underwent during the industrial revolution of the past century, A.T. Kearney said.
While IT, and ERP systems in particular, will be the primary drivers of change in the office sector, other factors include integration, standardization and consolidation of business processes.
Germany is the home base of SAP AG, the world's biggest supplier of ERP software.
The survey was conducted independently and funded by A.T.Kearney, said Frettlöhr.