With digital disruption affecting many sectors by automating jobs, streamlining processes and enabling new opportunities, it comes as no surprise that the skills recruiters are on the lookout for are technology related.
LinkedIn recently analysed data from its member base of over 500 million to determine what skills employers are currently looking for.
The skills were then grouped into categories with niche requirements - such as iOS, for example, coming under mobile development.
The professional networking site then analysed hiring and recruiting activity during an eight-month span and “identified the skill categories that belonged to members who were more likely to start a new role within a company and receive interest from companies.”
It has collated a list of the 25 most desirable skills for 2018, with cloud computing, data mining and software integration all in high demand. You can jump to the full list here.
However, the LinkedIn report, and subsequent others on the impact of digital in the workplace, is doing little to instil confidence in jobseekers.
A separate survey from Salesforce and YouGov on 2,000 UK workers, job seekers and students, found that over a third (37%) fear that they won't be able to keep a job in the future if they don't acquire further skills to keep pace with technology.
It also found that a third of those in middle management roles might struggle to gain employment in the future as they didn’t receive digital skills training whilst in education.
In fact, the vast majority (91%) of UK adults believe it is now essential for employers to provide training in technologies relevant to future jobs.
The implications of this report on recruitment, combined with the talent dearth in the sector, means there should be some flexibility over the candidates your clients are looking for.
Recently, Recruitment Grapevine spoke to Tom Hadley, Director of Policy at the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), who told us that employers are going to need to be more flexible. Instead of trying to find a candidate who meets all the requirements, there needs to be some leeway regarding their skill-set, especially if they have the motivation and soft skills to learn.
On the next page, you can find the 25 most desirable skills in 2018.
