Trending Job Market and In-Demand Qualifications

The world has seen a massive shift over the last few years. The pandemic has changed the way we live our lives and has brought about many changes in numerous aspects of our lives, including the job market. Industry experts believe that many of the various transitions that have taken place in the job market were existing trends that were merely accelerated due to the pandemic. They also believe that these trends can be expected to continue over the next few years, despite high volatility and the unpredictable nature of the present situation. The best qualifications for a job have changed due to the changing patterns in workplace behaviour, leaving many people wondering what they need to do in order to keep up with the times. Online courses for job seekers are also growing rapidly, making it easier for individuals to acquire the skills they need to progress in their career. This article takes a look at some of the other trends that can be observed in the job market and what qualifications you should consider availing to keep up with the future ways of work.

How has the pandemic affected the job market?

The pandemic had a heavy toll on the job market and its unexpected arrival gave many companies, employers and job seekers a lot to think about. Listed below are some behaviours in the job market that could be observed post-pandemic:

– Surge in remote working jobs: It is clear that remote work has now become the new normal and this trend is expected to stay. To keep up, employers had to rethink the way their employees worked, by offering more flexible hours, allocating adequate resources, while maintaining workplace security with remote work. The demand for remote working jobs is also evident, with job seekers showing a heavy preference for employers who provide their employees the freedom to work from the safety of their homes.

– Increased employee data collection: Due to the increase in remote work, companies are resorting to technology to gather more data from employees – such as the time of clocking in and clocking out, email and communication monitoring, tracking the usage of company resources, etc. By doing so, employers hope to maintain the same level of productivity in employees as if working from the office.

– Slower recruitment: Several companies and businesses suffered financially during the pandemic and were actively pursuing ways to cut down on their expenses and costs. As such, recruitment was brought to a standstill and employee expansion was simply out of the question in most places. In turn, this trend left many job seekers stranded, without sufficient opportunities to acquire the jobs they wanted.

– Shift from efficiency to resiliency: Prior to the pandemic, the focus of most businesses was on efficiency and how they could meet business objectives with the optimum number of resources and minimum waste. However, during the post-pandemic period it can be observed that businesses are more focused on gearing up for long-term change, with strategies that support resiliency and fixate on how well they can adapt to an ever-changing situation.

What are the jobs of the future?

It is also becoming apparent that certain types of jobs and roles are growing in demand. A number of factors attributed to this shift in demand – including rapidly developing technological landscape as well as behavioural shifts created by the pandemic.

A pattern noticeable is the weightage given to the importance of human interaction throughout most job roles such as marketing, sales and content production. In terms of skills, more humane skills such as mindfulness, listening and kindness were being preferred, in comparison to the more technical skills that were in demand just a couple of years ago.

Jobs with growing demand:

• Data analysts and scientists
• AI and machine learning specialists
• Big data specialists
• Digital marketing and strategy specialists
• Process automation specialists
• Business development professionals
• Digital transformation specialists
• Information security analysts
• Software and applications developers

Jobs with decreasing demand:

• Data entry clerks
• Administrative and executive secretaries
• Accounting, bookkeeping and payroll clerks
• Accountants and auditors
• Assembly and factory workers
• Business services and administration managers
• Client information and customer service workers
• General and operations managers
• Mechanics and machinery repairers
• Material-recording and stock-keeping clerks

Should you consider switching your career?

There are many things that you need to consider if you are thinking about switching to a different career – especially since the post-pandemic period can be one of great unpredictability. Given below are a few questions that you might want to ask yourself:

1. Will a career change be the correct solution to address your current challenges?
2. Is it really the correct time to change your career? Will a different time yield better benefits?
3. Are you resilient enough to tackle the unexpected challenges? Are you aware that it might not always be a smooth journey?
4. What soft skills and hard skills do you currently have? What skills should you develop more?
5. What are your greatest strengths and achievements in terms of your career? Do they align with the new career that you hope to pursue?
6. What type of work do you genuinely enjoy doing? Does your new career support this?
7. Does your new career path comply with your core values and non-negotiables?
8. Is the change in career truly worth it? What is your true motivating factor for switching careers?

What qualifications should you consider availing?

Before switching careers, you first need to ensure that you are backed by the necessary qualifications and skills. Regardless of your field of interest, you are likely to have a vast number of options to choose from – entry level courses, professional certificates, diploma programmes, degrees programmes and more.

As a leading vocational and professional accredited course provider, 1Training is a great option to consider if you are looking to obtain additional qualifications. With over 1000 courses offered to students worldwide, 1Training is backed by reputed awarding bodies, including PeopleCert, CPD, Pearson BTEC and ABC, all of which are Ofqual regulated. Students have the ability to follow online courses, with a range of subjects on offer – from IT to finance to psychology to operative skills, that are some of the best qualifications for a job.

Click the link below for more details and information on the various courses available: (Source:1Training.org)