Top in-demand skills right now

As Bob Dylan said, “the times – they are a changin” – and these words still hold today. The vast majority of jobs today have changed dramatically over the past 50 years and will continue to change for years to come. With the advent of advanced computational power, many skills aren’t that valuable anymore, and other new roles have taken over the ranks for high-paying jobs. To future-proof your career and make sure that you are in the high-earning ranks, here are the top skills in demand in 2023.

Skills of the future

As we move into the new industrial revolution, the skills you need to succeed in the workplace are changing. Regardless of whether you are a corporate veteran or just starting your career, organisations want their employees to continue learning and advancing their knowledge and expertise.

The world of work has advanced in many ways, with skill development being a focal point at most future-driven organisations. To better understand and define the broad term “skills”, we separate it into two categories, hard and soft skills.

  • Hard skills are job-related competencies that are essential to complete work. They apply to a certain career and will change depending on your field. These are teachable skills.
  • Soft skills are those traits and personal qualities that affect how you work and whether you are a preferable employee. These are skills such as leadership, problem-solving, flexibility, good communication and collaboration skills, time management and critical thinking. 

The important aspect to recognise is that soft skills are transferable in almost any role, whereas hard skills are job or role specific.

Hard skills for 2023

Hard skills, also known as technical skills, is technical knowledge or training received through life experience, including work or education. As an example:

  • You may be familiar with a point-of-sale system if you’ve worked in food service or retail.
  • You could also be familiar with Microsoft Excel if you’ve taken an accounting class.
  • You may be able to speak a foreign language fluently if you have studied it.

Hard skills are those that you can learn. Often the top hard skills relate to industries and segments that are experiencing significant growth. This growth results in a skills shortage in the job market, and consequently, employees who have these hard skills are very valuable to organisations. Since there is a big demand and a low supply of the top hard skills, these are the future learning skills you need to excel in your career.

The top hard skills employers are looking for in 2023 are: 

Soft skills for 2023

Soft skills are personal habits and characteristics that impact how you work, both independently and in a team. Many employers value effective communication as a critical soft skill, alongside dependability, collaboration, and active listening.

Soft skills are vital for your career development. While hard skills are required to complete technical duties in the workplace, soft skills are required to establish a positive and effective work environment. As a result, businesses frequently seek candidates with a combination of soft and hard skills. It’s harder to develop soft skills, and as a result, some employers may prefer candidates with a stronger set of soft skills over candidates with a strong set of hard skills.

The most important soft skills for 2023 are:

  • Flexibility and adaptability
  • Collaboration and communication 
  • Leadership skills
  • Critical thinking and problem solving

Future learning skills

Despite the frequent confusion between the terms “skill” and “competence,” there is a distinction between the two. The primary distinction is that competence is far larger than a single skill. A competency requires a combination of hard and soft skills,  where a skill is a practical component of a greater competency. 

The top skills in demand in 2023 are also some of the highest-paying jobs in 2023. Organisations are constantly aware of the top in-demand skills of the future, and you can equip yourself with the tools, skills and knowledge to boost your career to the next level. A combination of the top hard and soft skills will place you in the upper ranks, no matter what your industry is. 

Conclusion

It is important to continue to learn and upskill throughout your career. New technologies are constantly being developed, and you need to stay up to date on the latest advances in your industry. Remember that learning never stops, and nowadays information is accessible with the click of a button. 

Preparing for the future requires you to acknowledge your current competencies, and recognise your shortfalls. You can easily determine your hard skills, such as whether you have ever done any programming or managed a large project. Recognising your soft skills might be a bit more challenging since these skills are rather hard to measure. You can prepare for the future with a strong combination of hard and soft skills, just follow the skill sets for 2023 and never stop learning.