How to Survive Job crisis? - These are the Skills that will Help you, Experts Say!

COVID19 has caused a paradigm shift in the manner in which we approach work. It is largely digital at this point. 

We are at a juncture where companies are trying to assess alternate working models wherein a lot of emphasis is placed on quick adoption of technology and this in turn will create a greater demand for digital literacy and soft skills.

“Employees need to be up- skilled and reskilled during the lockdown period and be prepared for the changed workplace environment. The current disruption has reinforced the need for technical, digital and soft skills required to work both in the virtual and digital world and these are the skills hiring managers are seeking in employees,” Neeti Sharma, SVP, Team Lease services told the Business Insider.

This is crucial at this point since thousands of employees have lost their jobs due to COVID19. Companies such as Ola, Zomato, Swiggy and Make My Trip have opted for layoffs. According to a survey conducted by Praxis Global Alliance, a Gurugram- based management consulting and market research firm, one in four startups in India already announced pay cuts.

Nevertheless, IT, edtech, pharma and healthcare are areas that are expected to continue growing and hiring. 

Vijay Sivaram, CEO of IT staffing firm iOS developers told that skills like Kubernetes and microservices will be in demand in the coming months. “For functional roles, knowledge of platforms like application tracking systems for HR, invoicing through the use of RPA’s, collections through bots are becoming the new norm,” he said. He also added that Python, angular, full stack and SaaS along with data analytics skills will enable people to secure jobs especially in AI/ ML technologies.

Employees might also be expected to upgrade their technological skills in order to improve their performance in the respective roles. Some employees at managerial positions and certain roles might be in more demand than others. Product managers might be crucial to change and adopt the company’s product plans in times like these. Similarly, senior managers might be expected to understand technology and automation better. Sales professionals too might be expected to know how digital skills can be adopted to make changes in their area of work.  HR Executives will be expected to brace themselves since they might have to deal with employees’ mental, emotional and physical wellbeing. 

The pandemic has called for organizations and employees to make innovative and smart choices to not only tackle the disaster, but also to make changes to their skill set and adopt to embrace the new changes swiftly. At the same time employers will have to ensure that this does not have a negative impact on employee’s morale, business productivity and organizational culture.