It’s not about degrees and experience, it’s about SKILLS

I cannot emphasize the importance of building the skills whether you have a job or not. The students who are just entering the workforce should constantly up-skill themselves, and people with white-collar jobs cannot succeed without up-skilling and getting comfortable with technology.

Whether you are a techie or a salesperson, you will have to work harder to earn or stay in the job. There is more supply and less demand. It’s fine if you are feeling in-secure, because it will motivate you to up-skill and become the best in what you do. Let me explain.

NEW-COLLAR

I am a big fan of the term - “new-collar” coined by IBM’s then-CEO Ginni Rometty in 2016. New-collar jobs refer to roles in technology industry’s faster growing fields such as cybersecurity, cloud computing, cognitive business and digital design - that do not always require a traditional degree. What they require is the right mix of in-demand skill sets.

New-collar is even more relevant post COVID19, because organisations are looking for people with specific skills to get the job done. So, if you have relevant skills for today’s IT industry in areas such as cybersecurity, application development, database management and cloud, then you have a significant chance to get absorbed.

NEW-COLLAR JOBS

Based on a quick survey by CRN, these are the new IT jobs and skills that will be in high-demand post COVID19 - 

• Network automation development
• Security and governance specialisations  
• IT sales/marketing evolution  
• The combination of Dev/SecOps
• Cloud cost optimisation

You can read more about these roles here: 

THERE IS NO FREE LUNCH

We will see increased focus and spending on security, cloud infrastructure and services, and communications and collaboration. Question is whether you are a techie or a salesperson, are you prepared for it? Are you confident of discussing and positioning these technologies and trends to CXOs that will shape the businesses in the next few months and years? 

About 12.2 crore Indians lost their jobs during the coronavirus lockdown in April according to Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE).

If you have lost a job, talk to the industry leaders, find a mentor, understand the growth areas in your niche, and up-skill yourself to prepare for the jobs in demand or will be in demand.

According to a snap poll done among the CEOs by the industry chamber CII, showed that almost half of them believed they may have to fire up to 30 percent of their staff.

And if you have a job, then prove your worth. Showcase your knowledge and the new skills you have developed in the business planning process, virtual meetings, customer discussions and communication.

More importantly, use the newly gained skills to guide, educate, ideate and transform ideas into opportunities.

I reiterate it’s not about degrees and experience, it’s about skills and the latest ones. Go get one if you haven't already!