What are quaternary activities?

With the advancement and rapid rise in technology, the quaternary sector has evolved very quickly in a minimal time. This sector is very different from others as most are based on something directly physical, while this is a knowledge-oriented space. This activity involves highly skilled people who have a more excellent expertise. It can be taken with an example of a CEO of an MNC and a medical transcriptionist. They both require skill and knowledge and work in a segment around expertise.

This sector is divided into quaternary and quinary activities.

What is the quaternary sector?

Its work involves the collection, production, and dissemination of information or even the production of information. Quaternary activities revolve and focus on research development and can be taken as an advanced form of service that involves having expertise, technical skills, and dedicated specialised knowledge.

Growth of quaternary activities: As far as economic growth is concerned, the quaternary sector, along with the tertiary sector, has replaced most of the employment coming from the primary and secondary sectors. Statistically, over half of all workers in the developed economies are working in the ‘knowledge sector’. There has been very significant growth in demand for and consumption of information-based services.

Who is engaged in the quaternary activities?

This sector is very diverse and is present where knowledge is served. This list includes services from mutual fund managers to consultancy firms, software developers, and statisticians. Not only this, people working in office buildings, schools and university classrooms, offices of hospitals and doctors clinics, theatre, accounting, and brokerage firms all fall under the category of the quaternary sector.

Key points of quaternary activities:

Just like a few tertiary activities, quaternary activities can also be outsourced. These are not limited to resources affected by the environment or accessibility being tied to a localised market. As the work and skills are very different and require special expertise, quaternary activities have a considerable market share in the developed economies.

However, since globalisation has started taking place, developing nations have joined. Quaternary activities involve a chunk load of professions and resultantly work as a good source of employment. The growth of quaternary activities is also considered a good sign.

Quaternary activities are done or are referred to as intellectual occupations whose work revolve around researching and developing ideas. It is dedicated to a high order of professionals and administrative services, generating information, processing, and transmission.

What are quinary activities?

The quinary activity involves the highest level of decision-makers or policymakers. This is very different from quaternary activities. Quinary services focus on creating, re-arranging, and interpreting new and existing ideas, data interpretation, and the use and evaluation of newer technologies. These professions are very limited in nature, but their importance and role in the structure of advanced economies outweigh their count far away.

Who is engaged in quinary activities?

Commonly known with the name of ‘gold collar’ professions, these activities are yet another category or subdivision of the tertiary sector which involves special and highly paid skills of people employed as business executives, government officials, research scientists, financial and legal consultants, etc. Their role in the nation and the economy building is far more important. As they are the ones who are responsible for policymaking and innovation centres within the knowledge sector, they indirectly work in regard with the primary and secondary sectors.

What is outsourcing?

Outsourcing is a very common part of the work culture in quaternary activities. It essentially means giving out work to another outside person or agency. It improves efficiency and reduces cost as well. Outsourcing business activities include information technology (IT), human resources, customer support and call centre services, and manufacturing & engineering times.

It is also referred to by the term offshoring, though often, offshoring and outsourcing are used together. Many MNC from developed nations hire people from other people to do their work on a contractual basis as the human labour found at the latter is significantly at a very low cost. This provides employment opportunities in developing nations such as India, Botswana, etc.

As a result, it is expected that migration may also come down in the future. However, outsourcing countries also face resistance from the youth looking for jobs in their respective country.

What are BPOs And KPOs?

BPOs and KPOs are a very significant part of quaternary activities.

BPO: It stands for Business Process Outsourcing. It involves call centres, customer support services, and other similar work. These jobs are transferred or outsourced by developed nations as the overhead costs are very low, making it profitable for them compared to their own country.

KPO: It stands for Knowledge Process Outsourcing. It involves highly skilled workers and allows companies to create more business opportunities—for example – learning, business research, R & D activities, Intellectual property research.

The digital divide:

The development of information and communication technology opportunities has surged rapidly but very unevenly across the globe. Due to wide-ranging economic, social, and political differences globally, the development is uneven. Some countries have moved forward while the developing nations have lagged far behind. This phenomenon is known as the digital divide.

The most suitable example is metropolitan cities being more developed than rural areas. This phenomenon is seen more in developing countries than the developed ones.

Conclusion

Quaternary activities are the ones that involve the collection, production, and dissemination of information or even the production of information. These are highly knowledge-based and require specialised skills and expertise in the niche. Quaternary activities have taken up jobs from the primary and secondary sectors in the last few decades. They evolve day by day as the demand for information consumption increases daily.