Top eight skills that will change the future of hiring

The report estimates that a shift in the labor division between humans and machines may displace 85 million jobs by 2025. However, 97 million new jobs may emerge till then, which would be better suited for the new labor division.

Therefore, learning employability skills that help improve workforce productivity is imperative for employees. Fortunately, today we have the means to re-skill and upskill employees at an unprecedented scale. Organizations must identify the widening skills gap and enhance the employability skills of the workforce to bridge the gap between their current and anticipated skill levels.

Digital literacy is crucial for today’s workforce because the rise in technology usage has increased workplace automation. As a result, employers are increasingly looking for employees who can easily utilize digital platforms and software. For example, an applicant tracking system for HR, a task manager for the marketing team, and a lead manager for the sales team. These tools aid our work and improve data storage and process streamlining.

Most organizations rely on data insights to make informed decisions, which makes data literacy a vital employability skill for the future. Individuals with data literacy skills can effectively gather, interpret, and analyze data, gaining valuable insights and details of upcoming challenges. This helps prepare the organization for future challenges and modify strategies or processes for business excellence.

Critical thinking skills are necessary to succeed in a tech landscape driven by information overload, data inundation, and evidence-based outcomes. It involves analyzing issues and situations based on evidence or facts instead of relying on personal opinions, conventional thinking, or biases. By questioning the validity of the available data points, critical thinkers determine reliable next steps, which is beneficial for business success.

Complex problem-solving skills enable individuals to break down problems, identify patterns, and develop innovative solutions. This employability skill is relevant for technical roles and managerial or leadership positions. Thinking outside the box and developing innovative solutions is important for businesses to remain competitive and adapt to a dynamic market.

An emotionally intelligent person can recognize and regulate their emotions while understanding the impact on colleagues and involved stakeholders. Therefore, this employability skill allows individuals to effectively address social complexities and appropriately behave in crucial situations. These employees can build better relationships and resolve conflicts.

Teams are evolving to include hybrid workers, fully remote workers, and contractors who work across projects and teams, which changes the nature of collaboration and teamwork. To effectively collaborate and communicate with colleagues in this dynamic workplace, employees need to adapt, communicate without criticism, and lead by example.

Effective leaders encourage innovation, lead by example, and ensure the team thrives. Due to distributed teams, rising diversity, the gig economy, and fluid organizational structures, every individual now needs leadership skills. As organizations become more complex and interconnected, the ability to lead with vision, empathy, and agility is becoming increasingly important for success.

Effective time management skills are important for workplace performance. There are multiple critical tasks with shrinking timelines; therefore, paying attention to priorities is the key to delivering expected outcomes.

The share of workers who can be reskilled within six months is lower in the financial services and energy sectors, as they will require more time-intensive programs. However, employees can acquire one of the above eight employability skills in emerging professions within one or two months.

Learning new skills in product development, data, and AI could take two to three months, and a four-month learning program could help people transition to roles related to cloud computing.

Mercer | Mettl’s online assessment tools help organizations identify culturally and technically fit candidates. The talent assessment suite, including psychometric tests, behavioral tests, aptitude tests, technical tests, and communication skills tests, allows the evaluation of potential employees based on their behavior, emotional intelligence, and other critical skills.

Mercer | Mettl’s reskilling suite helps build a future-ready workforce. It includes skills gap analysis, learning agility and proximity, and training effectiveness. These assessments help understand the skills gap in your workforce, evaluate their learning potential, and assess the training program’s success.

As companies look to bridge the skills gap to create a future-ready workforce, innovative solutions, like Mercer | Mettl’s assessments, help streamline employees’ learning journey. Leveraging these tests help organizations ensure that their employees have the necessary skills to thrive in the digital-first environment.