Introduction
In today's digital age, the job market is undergoing a seismic shift. With technology advancing at breakneck speed, businesses are adapting to stay ahead of the curve. But what does this mean for your career? The harsh reality is that many jobs are becoming automated, making it essential to acquire skills that will future-proof your career. The good news is that there are specific digital skills that can not only boost your employability but also open doors to new opportunities. In this post, we'll explore the top 8 digital skills that will keep you ahead of the curve and in high demand. From data analysis to social media management, we'll dive into the skills that will make you a valuable asset in the digital workforce.
What are digital skills?
According to this definition, digital skills are defined as a range of abilities to use digital devices, communication applications, and networks to access and manage information. They enable people to create and share digital content, communicate and collaborate, and solve problems for effective and creative self-fulfillment in life, learning, work, and social activities at large.
These skills enable us to create, share and analyze content using digital devices, to solve problems in our business and social lives.
Whether you are old or young, employed or about to enter the job market, or you want to start a business, these skills would give you the confidence to thrive in the digital world.
The Benefits of Acquiring Digital Skills
According to this report by nationalskillsacquisition,
- 92% of jobs require digital skills.
- Workers that qualify for jobs that require even one digital skill can earn an average of 23 percent more than in a job requiring no digital skills.
- Moving from a job requiring no digital skills to one requiring at least three can increase pay by an average of 45%.
Obviously, there are several reasons why you should acquire these skills including but not limited to:
- Versatility: Digital skills are transferable across most industries, allowing you to adapt and thrive in various fields.
- Enhanced Employability: Developing digital skills makes you a more attractive candidate, regardless of your profession.
- Efficient Performance: By acquiring digital skills, you'll be able to streamline tasks, automate processes, and work more efficiently in your current role.
In some countries, especially developed countries, the number of people with digital skills is higher, for example in Europe, as at 2023, 56% of people in the EU aged 16 to 74 had at least basic overall digital skills. While in some less developed countries the numbers are lower, for instance, a survey carried out in the same year showed that 85% of Nigerian graduates have no digital skill.
So let's get into it
1. Data analysis and interpretation
Data analysis is the practice of extracting useful insights from raw data for informed decision-making. The job of a data analyst is to gather data from various sources, identify and fix errors in them, drill down to important and useful information hidden in the data and present the resulting insights for implementation in real world solutions and strategies.
Data analysts are very important in business as they help in identifying opportunities, reducing risks and making informed decisions. The average salary for a data analyst is $78,347 per year in the United States. According to zippia, business & data analysts are most in-demand in New York, NY and the finance industry is the highest-paying for business & data analysts. The good news is that data analysts are in great demand across all industries and you can readily find a spot.
2. Cloud computing and management
As organizations increasingly migrate their IT infrastructure to the cloud, effective cloud management becomes crucial. This involves governing and overseeing cloud-based resources, services, and applications to harness the benefits of flexibility, scalability, and cost-effectiveness.
To ensure optimal performance, security, and cost optimization, cloud resources require systematic configuration and management.
Cloud management encompasses a comprehensive framework of policies, strategies, and technologies to orchestrate and maintain cloud environments across private, public, and hybrid platforms.
Cloud computing is a model of delivering computing services over the internet, where resources such as Servers, storage, applications, and services are provided as a service to users on-demand, anywhere, anytime. With cloud technology, resources are accessible over the internet or a private network. These resources are pooled together to provide a multi-tenant environment. They can be quickly scaled up or down to match changing needs, and users only pay for the resources they use.
Cloud computing provides benefits to organisations such as scalability, flexibility, cost-effectiveness, reliability, and security.
Jobs requiring this skill are Cloud administrator, cloud support engineer, cloud security analyst, cloud automation engineer, etc. Depending on your specific field, you can expect to earn about $105,000 a year.
3. Cybersecurity Basics
Cybersecurity encompasses the measures taken to safeguard computer systems, networks, and digital assets from malicious attacks, unauthorized access, and potential vulnerabilities. This includes protecting against:
- Confidential data breaches or exposure
- Theft, damage, or corruption of hardware, software, or sensitive information
- Disruption, manipulation, or exploitation of essential services and operations
Effective cybersecurity ensures the integrity, availability, and confidentiality of digital resources, preventing harm to individuals, organizations, and society as a whole. According to cybersecurityventures, Global cybersecurity job vacancies grew by 350%, from one million openings in 2013 to 3.5 million in 2021. The number of unfilled jobs remains at 3.5 million in 2023, with more than 750,000 of those positions in the U.S. The average cybersecurity analyst can expect to earn $122,000 a year.
4. Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning
Artificial intelligence (AI) simulates human intelligence in machines, enabling them to perform tasks that typically require human-like intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and language understanding. AI involves developing algorithms, models, and systems that can process and analyze vast amounts of data, identify patterns, make predictions, adapt to new situations, and make decisions autonomously or semi-autonomously.
Machine learning (ML) is a subset of artificial intelligence (AI) that involves training algorithms to learn from data and make predictions or decisions without being explicitly programmed. This enables computers to learn from experience, improve performance over time, and make predictions or decisions based on data. The machine learning process involves collecting and preprocessing data, selecting and training a model, evaluating and testing its performance, and deploying it for use.
With these skills you can work as an Artificial Intelligence Engineer or a Machine Learning Engineer, and can expect to make about $107,057 a year.
5. Website Development and Design
Web design and development is the process of creating and building websites, applications, and other online platforms that are visually appealing, user-friendly, and functional. It involves a combination of technical skills, creativity, and strategic planning to produce a website that meets the client's goals and user needs.
Web design focuses on the visual aspects, including: Layout and typography, Color schemes and branding, Imagery and graphics, User experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design while Web development focuses on the functional aspects, including: Front-end development (client-side), which is building the user interface and user experience using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and frameworks like React or Angular. and back-end development (server-side) which involves building the server, database, and API connectivity using languages like PHP, Ruby, Python, and frameworks like Node.js or Django. It also includes database management, testing and debugging.
According to this statistics, the overall employment of web developers and digital designers is projected to grow 16 percent from 2022 to 2032. 19,000 openings for web developers and digital designers are projected each year, on average, over the decade. The average salary of a web developer is $98,540.
6. Digital marketing
Digital marketing refers to the promotion of products, brands, or services using digital channels to reach, engage, and convert target audiences into customers. It leverages various digital technologies to build brand awareness, drive website traffic, generate leads, increase sales, and improve customer retention.
Digital marketing involves a range of strategies and techniques, including search engine optimization, pay-per-click advertising, social media marketing, email marketing automation, content marketing, influencer marketing partnerships, and affiliate programs such as ShareASale, which enable businesses to partner with affiliates who promote their products or services in exchange for commissions. By utilizing these digital channels, businesses can enjoy increased reach and accessibility, targeted and personalized marketing, measurable and trackable results, and cost-effectiveness compared to traditional marketing methods.
Digital ad spend is forecast to be $667.6 billion in 2024, representing 68.9% of media ad spend. As a digital marketer, you can expect to earn $65,274 per year.
7. Social media
Social media as a digital skill refers to the ability to effectively create, curate, and manage online content and interactions across various social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
This skill involves understanding each platform's unique features, audience, and best practices, creating engaging, high-quality content that resonates with target audiences, developing and implementing social media strategies to achieve specific goals, building and maintaining online communities through consistent engagement, monitoring and analyzing performance using metrics and analytics tools, staying up-to-date with platform updates, trends, and algorithm changes.
In today's digital landscape, social media skills are essential for businesses, marketers, and individuals seeking to establish a strong online presence, connect with their audience, and drive results.
As per this report by smartinsights, more than half of the world now uses social media. That is 62.6% of the world's population, with 5.07 billion people around the world now using social media, and 259 million new users coming online within the last year. The average daily time spent using social media is 2h 20m. Social media experts are in quite high demand. A social media manager can expect an average of $57,939 a year (indeed)
8. Project management
Project management refers to the ability to plan, organize, and oversee the execution of specific projects or initiatives within a digital context. This involves:
- Coordinating and leading cross-functional teams, including remote worker
- Developing and managing project plans, timelines, and budgets
- Identifying and mitigating risks, issues, and dependencies
- Communicating effectively with stakeholders, team members, and clients
- Utilizing digital tools, such as project management software (e.g., Asana, Trello, MS Project), collaboration platforms (e.g., Slack, Teams), and version control systems (e.g., GitHub)
In conclusion,
Stay ahead of the curve in the digital job market by learning these 8 in-demand skills: data analysis, cloud computing, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, website development, digital marketing, social media management, and project management. Mastering these skills can boost your employability, increase your earning potential, and open doors to new career opportunities.
Acquiring these digital skills can future-proof your career and increase your earning potential.
Are you already ahead of the curve? Do you possess some of these in-demand skills or are you currently working on developing one or more? Share your experiences, challenges, and successes in the comments below! Let's learn from each other and grow together in the ever-evolving digital landscape.
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