Data suggests that there will be 29 million skills in deficit by 2030. To address this skills shortage, recruiters are shifting their focus to hiring professionals with the ability to adapt to changing roles. Check which roles will be most in-demand in 2020 and how to be hired for them.

New Year 2020 has started on a positive note for job-seekers with both government and private sectors announcing hiring in huge numbers. However, a mere announcement of vacancies may not translate into actual hiring. In 2019, several new-age jobs could not find a suitable match due to skill gaps across sectors. According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), India is staring at a 29 million skill-deficit by 2030.

Owing to the skill shortage, 53 per cent of Indian businesses could not recruit in 2019. According to ILO, in the job profile of development operations manager, 63 per cent openings remained vacant due to lack of skill-sets. Further, job profiles of database specialist (62 per cent), senior information technology manager (61), system programmer (59) and web administrator (58) jobs remain vacant and these sectors would continue to look for employees.

In such a scenario, how would one be able to take up the jobs lying vacant due to skill shortage? Here is what experts say:

Focus on the basics

To take up these jobs, candidates need to focus on the basics first. “It would be more crucial for job-seekers to have a basic understanding or a primary level course in technology, irrespective of the field they are applying in as technology is the way things communicate. For instance, financial services are on an upward trajectory and is set to witness major hiring due to newer service avenues created by technology in the sector and onset of fin-tech, online banking services etc,” said Anindya Mallick, Partner, Deloitte India.

In India, most hiring will be in service-oriented jobs. The growing convergence between technology and business processes continued to redefine job roles. The high-end jobs will be knowledge-oriented wherein continuous skill and reskill will be needed, he added. “Softer skills like communication, team building and so on will be more welcome in the new year. Skilling is already accepted by large corporates and will become a norm in 2020,” he remarked.

Digital literacy and agility over field expert 

Since data is driving all big firms, understanding data and digital literacy will be the core skills. Zairus Master, CEO – Shine.com said, “2020 will also witness a renewed focus on data literacy. Organisations will be on the lookout for professionals who can read and analyse volumes of data to facilitate deeper insights and informed decisions about the organisation’s workforce. To address this skills shortage, recruiters are shifting their focus to hiring professionals with the ability to adapt to changing roles in flexible organisational structures.”