As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to reshape the world of work, 94 percent of Indian companies plan to improve the skills and capabilities of their employees this year, according to a study. LinkedIn’the latest “Workplace Learning Report”.
The report highlights employee upskilling, aligning training programs with business goals and creating a learning culture as the three key focus areas for Indian IT professionals. learning and development (L&D) in 2024.
Soft skills take center stage, with nine out of ten L&D professionals prioritizing people skills. The report reveals that 91 percent of L&D professionals in India view human skills as increasingly competitive in the economy. “Communication” tops LinkedIn’s list of most in-demand skills in 2024 across all countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including India. Soft skills such as critical thinking and problem solving are among the five skills that hiring managers in India consider most important in the AI era.
Ruchee Anand, Senior Director of Talent, Learning & Engagement Solutions at LinkedIn India, said, “Last year, we saw a 21-fold increase in job postings mentioning ChatGPT or GPT on LinkedIn, reflecting the growing demand for technology skills as companies explore AI. This year, we are seeing a pronounced shift toward skills – both technical and soft – to succeed in the AI era. With global job skills expected to change by 68% by 2030, we are seeing a greater emphasis on learning both hard and soft skills, with the majority of employers surveyed agreeing that this balance will be essential for organizations to succeed in the AI era.
L&D professionals want to invest in a culture of continuing education. Indian companies are working to upskill their employees to increase their confidence and job security by offering online training and development programs (53%) and providing opportunities for hands-on experimentation with Gen AI tools (54%).
This growing emphasis on creating a culture of learning will lead to increased investment in learning opportunities. In fact, 96% of L&D professionals in India say they can demonstrate their business value by helping their employees acquire the skills needed to move into different internal roles.
The LinkedIn report highlights that 48 percent of hiring managers in India provide career advancement opportunities to their existing employees. They also believe that “helping employees learn the skills needed for the future of work” (38 percent) and “offering competitive salaries and benefits” (31 percent) are essential to retaining top talent.
Additionally, Indian hiring managers believe that highlighting career development opportunities (59%) and “increasing internal mobility” (51%) are key to attracting top talent.
To help companies take a skills-first approach to achieving their L&D and talent goals, LinkedIn has introduced innovative AI-powered tools, such as Recruiter 2024, which allows recruiters to Quickly access high-quality candidate recommendations using natural language search prompts and rich tools. data, ensuring they are able to pre-screen talent based on the skills they need. These features will be available to all LinkedIn customers in the Asia Pacific region in English-speaking markets starting in late February.
To help businesses build the skills they need for the next decade, LinkedIn launched LinkedIn Learning, a chatbot experience that delivers real-time advice and personalized content recommendations. This is currently available to APAC customers in English-speaking markets.
In early March, LinkedIn will launch new career development and internal mobility features within LinkedIn Learning to help employees learn essential skills, develop the skills that matter for advancement, and connect with the best-fit opportunity to their organization. This will be available in English, Hindi, Japanese, Indonesian and Malay, among others.
First publication: February 27, 2024 | 10:58 a.m. STI
