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Digital Skills Tech Companies are Looking for in 2020

DIGITAL SKILLS DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY

Tech companies, and indeed all organizations in the digital economy, are coming to realise that digital skills are vital for employees in the digital era. It is more important than ever that new employees are cross-disciplined and have both hard and soft skills. Whatever the specific job you are interviewing for, recruiters will be looking out for a wider skill set and broader experience in their new hires.

This list covers ten of the top digital skills employers are looking for today and in the coming years.

1. Programming, Web and App Development
At the heart of any tech product or digital service is coding. The core languages that most programming and web and app development positions need include Bootstrap, jQuery, Angular, Code Igniter, PHP/JavaScript and MySQL. These skills are listed on a regular basis in the top 10 most in-demand by employers on LinkedIn. Having a portfolio of projects demonstrating your coding skills can also help to validate your knowledge and expertise and help you land your dream role. Examples of mobile and responsive web development experience will give you an edge over other candidates.

Coding is also vital for emerging technologies such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). Coding will provide AR and VR Developers with the foundation skills needed to develop the next generation of AR and VR technologies.

Find out how you can learn how to build world-leading websites and apps and accelerate your career as a Developer.

2. Digital Business Analysis


Digital Business Analysis helps organizations to make the right choices by providing an independent and objective mind set and applying a range of proven analysis techniques to make a convincing business case for investment in a digital solution. As digital transformation is central to all organizations in the digital economy, digital business analysis skills have become the hottest skills to have on your CV in the 21st Century. Digital Business Analysts are at the epicentre of digital transformation projects. They help organisations develop a digital ecosystem of technologies that will help drive digital transformation and business growth.



3. Digital Design and Data Visualization
Websites, Apps and Digital Services have one thing in common; a user interface. Any designer with experience creating effective, dynamic user experiences will be in high demand with most tech companies.

Designers can also visualize complex data to help management make vital business decisions. This skill is call data visualization. Data visualization is useful for senior leaders to gain valuable insights from data. Tools such as Tableau and Power BI are used by designers to analyse and visualize data.



4. Digital Project Management
Project management is by no means exclusively desirable to tech companies but it is a vital part of developing digital products and services in a timely and cost effective manner. An understanding of a range of methodologies such as SCRUM and AGILE will stand out on any CV. Digital Project Managers need to have a holistic understanding of how digital projects are developed – from ideation to prototype to fully developed digital product or service.

Find out why digital project management is essential for professionals in the digital age.





5. Digital Product Management
Another skill that is not unique to software development but one that is particularly valuable nonetheless is Digital Product Management. Software services in particular need to have a lifecycle management plan put in place. The continued growth of Software as a Service will make Product Management ever more integral to the tech sector.

Learn more about this in-demand digital skills below.



6. Digital Marketing
To promote their products and services tech companies will look to digital marketing. Understanding of how to get the most value for money out of the broadest range of networks will be key here. In-demand skills for Digital Marketers include:

Digital marketing tools
Analytics tools
Social media marketing
Content marketing
SEO
UX (User Experience Design)
Find out how Graduate, Bella Jasani, Executive Director of Global Marketing at ‎J.P. Morgan has benefited from upskilling with digital marketing skills.



7. Social Media


Some of the best PR today is carried out almost exclusively through social media. Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, Instagram and countless other platforms give tech companies direct access to customers, thought leaders and evangelists. The best Tech PR managers are Social Media managers.

8. Data Science and Data Analytics
Companies gather huge amounts of data that can be immensely valuable to them if they have an Big Data Analyst who can make sense of it all. Data Scientists are in-demand by employers across the world. Glassdoor constantly feature Data Scientists in their Best Jobs Listing .Not only is Data Science an excellent career path for professionals in the digital age, but demand far outweighs supply, making Data Scientists highly employable. A recent McKinsey report showed that “The United States alone faces a shortage of 140,000 to 190,000 people with analytical expertise and 1.5 million managers with skills to make decisions based on the analysis of big data.” As data science becomes a minimum requirement for more and more manager level jobs, learning data science will help you position yourself ahead of the curve.

Learn more about our data analytics program here and our data science program here




9. Decision Making for Leaders
Decision making is a critical for leaders in the digital age. According to the World Economic Forum, for those looking to future proof their careers, building competencies in areas that machines will be unlikely to tackle effectively (i.e. complex problem solving, creativity and problem solving) is likely the best recipe for success.

Organizations need leaders who can tap into their knowledge and experience to make rapid decisions. Behavioral economics is one route for professionals to improve their decision making abilities. Behavioral economics studies the effects of psychological, cognitive, emotional, cultural and social factors on the economic decisions of individuals and institutions. Learning this skill will improve your decision-making skills by gaining insights from the fields of cognitative and social psychology.

Find out more about behavioral economics here.



10. Something They Haven’t Seen Before
When an employer has to decide between a dozen or so equally qualified candidates they will want to see something to help them make a decision, something unique that a candidate can bring to the team. It might be work on an emerging technology or something completely out of left field. Our programs provide this element of uniqueness with each participant on our Professional Certificate programs gaining experience working in international cross-functional teams to develop a prototype of a digital product. Experience working in international cross-functional teams is highly sought after by tech companies worldwide. Communicating clearly to team members around the world and across multiple time zones helps organisations to operate more effectively and efficiently.

The project provides participants with an open-ended challenge in an international, cross-functional team setting. Participants will learn the processes and methodologies needed to address the uncertainty of a high-level digital project brief and to successfully develop a prototype that demonstrates an understanding of user-driven design, user experience, and lean user experience (UX) methodologies.This experience is invaluable for your CV and will be a major bonus in any interview situation.





Learn more about our unique learning experience from our graduates.

“I recently achieved my Media and Digital Strategist role with Reckitt Benckiser, a multinational company. The experience I gained during my time with Digital Skills Global helped me gain this position. I went through three different stages of tough interviews and a senior HR business partner from the head office in the UK gave me a final assessment before I got the job. The project we did on the program was a game changer for me…everyone in the organisation is deeply interested in me because of the experience I gained and I will be the one to champion the newly formed department of digital technology for the company.”