This McKinsey & Company article Supply Chain 4.0 in consumer goods describes in its future state vision how the increased use of automation will result in a more efficient supply chain where "Robots handle the material (pallets or boxes as well as single pieces), completely automatically the warehouse process from receiving/unloading, to putting away, to picking, packing, and shipping".

Automation is a disruptive force not only in how work gets done, but in how the demand for talent needs to change, according to one of the key findings in this Boston Consulting Group article Twelve forces that will change how organizations work . The authors note that "Companies will require increasing numbers of programmers and other highly skilled digital talent, along with an enormous upgrade in the skills and capabilities of these workers...individuals and organizations will have no choice but to invest in massive, ongoing skill development programs."