By: Ilham Audi Kusuma *
The term 4.0 industrial revolution is an interesting discussion in this digital era. The World Economic Forum, defines the industrial revolution 4.0 as a disruption of internet technology into the production process so that the processing of goods and services can be more efficient, fast, and mass. This is characterized by the use of robotic technology, intellectual engineering, Internet of Things (IoT), nanotechnology, to systems called cloud computing systems.
This is a continuation of the industrial revolution that took place since 1850. The first industrial revolution, mass production of goods using steam and water machines as part of the mechanization of products. Then, in the second industrial revolution, mechanization of production was emphasized in the use of electronic devices. Entering the 20th century, the third industrial revolution with the use of technology and automation in the production mechanization. Meanwhile, industrial revolution 4.0 has its own differences, especially in relation to internet usage and the speed of production which is much faster than the third industrial revolution. The industry began to switch to using intellectual engineering, machine learning, automatic transportation and very clever robotics that had begun to dominate the production process until 2020.
There is a latent danger of the industrial revolution 4.0 that lurks and makes this a topic that must be taken seriously by the government, especially for the two candidate candidates in the 2019 Presidential Election. Because the problem is not merely a change in production patterns. The threat arose in the form of the loss of several jobs in the future. On the other hand, also with the growth of the unicorns of Indonesia, the demand for workers who need high-level experts and skills will increase in the future. Just say mathematicians, computer experts, to marketing experts. This is because work that has a low skill level has been replaced by automation.
Researcher of the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef), Ahmad Heri Firdaus, said this was the reason for the importance of people understanding the industrial revolution 4.0. The fourth industrial revolution is a necessity, all countries will certainly enter that phase. However, it also invited a serious threat, namely millions of workers could be trapped with unemployment problems.
Indonesia with a labor profile dominated by low-educated workforce is seen as vulnerable to the latent impact of the 4.0 industrial revolution. Data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) in August recorded a working population of 88.43 million. With 40.69 percent of them only elementary school graduates. Then as many as 22.4 million people or 18.09 percent of the population are junior high school graduates. Indonesia is also entering a demographic bonus period. If the workforce continues to grow while workers only have a low education level, an increase in the unemployment rate can certainly be a threat.
Indonesia needs to prepare itself to prepare qualified human resources along with new jobs that were never imagined 10 years ago. Every country is certainly not ready for sudden changes in industrial patterns. The important thing is that the government policy or the elected President will need to be brought towards an indicator of the success of the implementation of the industrial revolution 4.0, such as the absorption of labor that is maintained along with the increase in industrial growth.
The industrial revolution 4.0 according to experts in addition to requiring policies, also requires a good ecosystem. HR must be qualified, but on the other hand, there must be incentives for businesses to make production costs more efficient.
Therefore, as expressed by the Professor of Management at the University of Indonesia, Rhenald Kasali, Indonesia needs a Visionary President, knows the digital world and appreciates the digital world so that the 4.0 industrial revolution can make the State of Indonesia a step ahead. The past Second Presidential Debate may be the most recent reference for the community to make a choice for leaders who have good ideas and ideas about the 4.0 industrial revolution in Indonesia.
*) The author is a student at Ciputra Surabaya University