What does the future hold for digital skills?
During National Coding week 2021 we gathered with local experts from PwC, Careers Guernsey, Digital Greenhouse and Avado Learning to discuss the importance of upskilling to keep up with automation transformation. If you missed the live panel you can watch it back at the bottom of this article.
Avado Learning
Many businesses are tackling a skills gap - a gap that has been widened during the events of 2020. Successful employers and businesses are emphasizing training, with 71% of businesses that saw growth over the last year having increased their training budget. The events of the last few years are causing individuals and businesses alike to quickly adapt to changes and to remain resilient in the face of the unknown.
Specific digital skills may help workers avoid the risk of automation as technology advances. Upskilling can take the skills that people have today and make them more relevant for the future. The experts placed emphasis on resilience, and how workers will need to be adaptable to change, think creatively and re-learn skills. Upskilling workers is an investment in the future for us all, as technology is pervasive and change will only keep accelerating faster.
Additionally, in the context of the Channel Islands, many roles in the financial services industry are at risk of automation - so workers will have to adapt to big changes in the next ten years or so.
"30% of jobs are at risk of being replaced completely or changed dramatically due to automation between now and 2035 ... that's over 27,000 jobs in the Channel Islands - 10,800 of those in Guernsey"
Leyla Yildirim, Director PwC Channel Islands
It is because of this risk of automation, that upskilling is key. If the Bailiwick gets fully on board and recognises the importance of upskilling and reskilling, then our islands could become a digital talent hub, Leyla explained. Digital skills are increasingly becoming a compulsory requirement for many different kinds of jobs, so to be digitally unskilled is to be unemployable in the future. These changes aren't just affecting certain industries - all job roles and sectors will be affected by automation, which means the task of upskilling the whole population is essential as we go into the future.
"It’s a cross community drive that is required, this isn’t just about one sector… every single job role and career in the island is being affected by this"
Lucy Kirby, Director of The Digital Greenhouse
Along with needing comprehensive knowledge of digital skills, skills like leadership, interpersonal skills and adaptability all tie in. There won't just be one set of new digital skills workers will have to learn - the technological future demands that we unlearn and relearn constantly. No longer can we sit back in a relatively unchanging role for years - we need to develop a thirst for learning and knowledge. We need to not be scared of technology automating jobs, but instead, view the opportunities that the future holds - both locally and globally. We are on the brink of accelerated technological advancement; we must become excited about possibility and the evolving workplace in order to thrive.
