Keep reading to find out what skills you need to make yourself future-proof in today's fast-changing and sometimes unforgiving job market.
In the age of the internet and social media, digital skills have never been so important. But are digital skills enough to prepare you for today’s unpredictable job market? Or are there other skills unique to humans that are future-proof guaranteed?
It’s no secret that the world of work was already undergoing drastic changes before the coronavirus pandemic. A 2019 study by Lloyds Bank found that 17.3 million working people (53%) in the UK do not have the essential digital skills they need to be effective in their job. As the pandemic spread worldwide and began to have devastating consequences to many industries (especially healthcare, hospitality, entertainment, transportation, and tourism), the skills gap only widened. With a third of people now worried about losing their jobs to automation, what skills can you gain to make yourself future-proof?
A recent report conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) “Workforce of the future, The competing forces shaping 2030”, found that employers are looking for skills that current artificial intelligence technology (AI) cannot replace. These “human skills” include creativity, innovation, imagination, design skills, problem-solving, collaboration, leadership, and adaptability.
At UK Study Centre, we believe that the number one skill on that list guaranteed to make you future-proof is adaptability. Adaptability is a soft skill that means being able to learn new skills and behaviours quickly in response to changing environment. Many people are already having to test their adaptability skills when working remotely, swapping in-person meetings for video calls and paper-based processes to cloud-based technologies. However, adaptability does not just relate to short-term changes to your work environment — it also relates to changes in the job market that can happen five or ten years from now.
So how do we adapt? Well, there is no one particular set of skills that can guarantee long-term success. To survive the change, you must keep on checking up on the market, understand what skills make you indispensable and pursue and maintain your personal development. One of the easiest ways you can do this is by speaking to one of our consultants about how you can benefit from a Professional Development Course. We can design bespoke courses and training programmes based on your professional goals and help you embark on the next step of your professional journey.
The future may be uncertain, but as long are you are willing to adapt, there is nothing you cannot achieve.
