Having IT skills is becoming increasingly important for non-technical specialists: 70% of such employees consider these skills to be an important factor in increasing their competitiveness, analysts of the “Higher Education” direction of the Skillfactory IT vocational school and the HR career development service learned. socialbites.ca got acquainted with the results of the study.
The most in-demand skills include analytics and data processing (66%), business process automation (52%), and working with artificial intelligence (48%). These areas are becoming critical in the context of digital business transformation.
However, despite the increasing importance of IT competencies, the level of proficiency in these areas among non-technical professionals remains relatively low. Only 20% of respondents rate their proficiency level as advanced, while 40% are limited to the use of basic office programs.
However, 85% of survey participants expressed a desire to improve their IT skills.
The most popular learning methods were online courses (79%) and self-study (77%), with one in five people prepared to go to university for this purpose.
“The demand for IT competencies among employees is growing rapidly in every field. Thus, in 2023, employers started looking for personnel with artificial intelligence skills 7.8 times more often. World Economic Forum experts also confirmed that technological literacy and working with artificial intelligence and Big Data are among the 10 most in-demand professional skills this year, said Alexey Dvoretsky, program director of the Skillfactory “Higher Education” school. IT professions.
Participants also have high expectations for developing their IT skills.
The majority (80%) are confident that once they master these topics, it will be easier for them to complete their work tasks; 45% believe they could work for a company; in more creative tasks because routine tasks can be automated. Additionally, almost a third (30%) expect a pay increase and a fifth are looking for a promotion.
But there are barriers. The main reasons why professionals do not seek to specialise in IT competencies are lack of demand from employers (24%) and the belief that their current role does not require specialist knowledge (28%).
However, current trends in the labor market show the opposite. Yes, a quarter of professionals still do not see direct demand for IT skills from their employers, and 28% are confident that their current role does not require specialist knowledge. However, it is important to understand that digital transformation is rapidly changing every aspect of our lives and the need for experts is increasing day by day. Already having IT skills is becoming not only a competitive advantage, but also a necessary condition for professional development.
Previously expert reportedHe said that the first prototypes of personal artificial intelligence will appear this year.