How to Keep Yourself Relevant as an Employee in 2020
How to Keep Yourself Relevant as an Employee in 2020
The recent pandemic has shown the world how disruptible the workforce actually is. In truth, every industry in the world was already at a tipping point well before now, but Covid-19 has accelerated the disruption to never before seen levels. Additionally, our recent reliance on technology to support remote learning and remote work has primed the workforce once again for a period of disruption. We must put some thought into how to keep relevant as an employee in 2020.
This time, however, the disruption will come from the technology we so adamantly rely on now. These technologies will change every industry of work in new and unforeseen ways. Staying relevant as an employee in 2020 will be about identifying the skills that are most important for the future of work. If you do not have the below skills, it would certainly be in your best interest to consider developing them.
Data Analytics
Data is the driving force behind social media and a number of other key software programs in existence today. This big data tells companies what to do and how to function based on consumer reports. However, the average worker at these companies has no idea how to decipher the data they are seeing. That’s where data scientists come into the picture.
Members of this profession are experts at deciphering data and turning those insights into key metrics that executives can use to make business decisions at companies. As the amount of data in the world continues to increase, so too will the need for professionals who can sort through that data and make meaning of it all.
Fortunately, there are data science boot camps that anyone can attend in order to gain the skills needed in this trade. This is just the beginning, however, as there are a number of fields exactly like this that use skills that are key to the future of work. Additionally, few technical skills are needed to launch a career in data science which makes it a viable option for anyone looking to change careers.
Coding or Programming
I’m sure it is not a surprise that coding and programming are two skills listed for staying relevant as an employee in 2020. If you are not aware of these two skills, they have been pivotal in changing the direction of work in the last decade. Specifically speaking, coding and programming have opened the door to careers in software development and created entirely new industries, such as cybersecurity.
Fortunately for any modern employees, coding and programming are skills that can be picked up completely online from the comfort of your own home. Coding boot camps have been popping up over the last decade as well and can teach anyone the skills needed to launch a career in this field.
As far as the future of work goes, these two skills are some of the most important overall to develop. For perspective, in 2015 alone, Fast Company reported that there were seven million jobs open that required coding skills. Given that it is now 2020, that number has risen exponentially. Without a doubt, learning to code or program is an incredibly useful skill.
Design Skills
If you are not a tech person and have no desire to learn how to code, consider taking up courses in visual design. A career that is opening up now for people with little tech knowledge is UX design, which boasts professionals who design the websites you stare at every day. If you are even a little bit creative by nature, consider entering this career path.
This skill is great for anyone who is in a creative career now, such as the arts or perhaps even some form of web design already. Regardless, visual design certainly tops the list for skills that will be handy for the future of work.
The fact of the matter is that the technological disruption is coming whether any of us want it to or not. Keeping that in mind, it will be important to stay ahead of this disruption in order to retain whatever career path you are on now. In that spirit, study today’s trends to see which skills will be the most relevant in the future of work so that you can narrow down what skills you need to work on developing. Creative destruction will create new jobs for all the traditional jobs that end up being destroyed due to technology, but instead of getting caught in that destruction, get ahead of it by refining your toolkit now.
Featured photo by Lukas Blazek on Unsplash
