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A rundown on the skills you’ll need for the post-Covid working world

24 Jul 2020

A number of experts shared insights into some of the skills we’ll need as we plan for working life after Covid-19.

How will work skills change after Covid-19? Digital skills have certainly become more important for workers in almost every industry in the past few months. People have had to get to grips with new forms of technology, from online communication to incorporating elements like video into their recruitment processes.

And yet, according to a new report from Accenture called Bridging the Gap: Ireland’s Digital Divide, Ireland is home to a “two-speed digital economy”. It said that many people around the country are “digitally disenfranchised” and that the digital skills gap will likely widen even further as a result of Covid-19.

Clearly, focusing on our digital literacy is only becoming more important. This is likely to remain a priority as we move forward, too, with some companies already confirming their plans to continue working remotely after Covid-19. Siemens, for example, announced its New Normal Working Model this week. It will see 140,000 of the company’s staff work remotely for an average of two or three days a week.

The need for less obvious skills has also cropped up, however, such as maintaining your visibility and proving your value while working remotely. In this piece, Hays’ Christine Wright outlines her 11 top tips for achieving this without burning yourself out in the process.

Niall Colreavy, a software architect at Fidelity Investments, also told us which skills are critical to getting his job done at the moment. He explained why context switching is often challenging for someone in his field and why people skills are important in the role.

It’s not just online working that the pandemic has pushed us towards; virtual learning and upskilling are also increasing in demand. I interviewed Charlie Chung, VP of solutions consulting and business development at online learning company NovoEd, to learn more about this. Chung believes that the pandemic could have sped up our move to online learning by five to seven years.

And whether you’re working remotely or not, dealing with issues and conflicts will always be a valuable skill. This week’s infographic provided tips about handling bullying at work.

Jobs news

The good jobs news we’ve been getting so far this July continued this week. We spoke to Trudi Lyons, recruitment manager for Citi in Dublin, about the positions her team is currently hiring for and the types of skills that will stand out in candidates. The company has vacancies for Java developers, net developers, technical business analysts and more, she told us.

Meanwhile, global telecoms company Indigo announced plans to expand its current operations across Ireland, the UK, France and Germany and establish new ventures in Spain and Singapore. Its subsidiary in Ireland, 4Site, has a number of roles available at the moment, including fibre designers, project managers and surveyors, among others.

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Lisa Ardill
By Lisa Ardill

Lisa Ardill joined Silicon Republic as senior careers reporter in July 2019. She has a BA in neuroscience and a master’s degree in science communication. She is also a semi-published poet and a big fan of doggos. Lisa briefly served as Careers Editor at Silicon Republic before leaving the company in June 2021.

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