Which skills are most important for the workers of the future?
Retraining will be vital for the future of work. Image: GaudiLab/Shutterstock

Which skills are most important for the workers of the future?

12 Jan 2018

This week in Careers, we explored the different facets of skill-building, and examined why skills are key to weathering the future of work.

There are a lot of reasons why you may be focusing on developing your skillset right now.

For one, it’s January. The connotations of new beginnings and having a clean slate are strong, and they can often bring with them a renewed sense of energy.

It’s also an extremely transformative time in the workplace, with emerging trends constantly reinforcing the importance of adaptability.

As we’ve mentioned previously in the Careers section, the ostensible risk that future-of-work developments such as automation pose can be counteracted by relaxing and retraining. What kind of skills are going to be the most important to acquire in the years to come?

It will come to no one’s surprise that increasing numbers are flocking to the booming tech industry. We took a look at the State of European Tech Report 2017, which found that Ireland has Europe’s fastest-growing tech worker population.

Within this tech population, software engineering is one of the hottest jobs in the tech right now, but what are the necessary skills to get the job of your dreams? We spoke to Sean Keeley, a software engineer at Oath, about the different skills he uses in his role.

In this time of seismic shifts in industry, businesses are just as concerned about future-proofing as workers, if not more so. According to Skillnets’ Paul Healy, skills are just as vital to businesses as they are to workers in weathering the working world of the future.

Gaining new contacts is a vital step on the road to developing your people skills. Hays’ Jane McNeill has compiled this wonderful guide to how you can become a pro at networking online.

Sticking with soft skills? Though Patricia Gonzalez already had a wildly impressive résumé brimming with skills and experience, her time as a customer experience manager at Slack has taught her that soft skills such as active listening are some of the most vital to career development.

For more on any of these stories, follow the links below.

1. Everything you need to know about online networking

Networking can feel like a bit of a minefield, especially online. Thankfully, Hays’ Jane McNeill is here to share her top tips.

2. Ireland has Europe’s fastest-growing tech worker population 

While Ireland tops the fastest-growing IT worker rankings once again, other European countries are catching up.

3. What are the essential skills for a software engineer?  

Want to be a software engineer? It’s about more than simply technical skills.

4. ‘Active listening skills have allowed me to become a better leader’ 

Patricia Gonzalez, a customer experience manager at Slack, details her career journey and how the firm has fostered her creativity.

5. Investment in skills is the key to future-proofing businesses 

With automation creeping into most future-of-work conversations, how can businesses ensure they future-proof themselves and their staff? Skillnets’ Paul Healy has some ideas.

Want stories like this and more direct to your inbox? Sign up for Tech Trends, Silicon Republic’s weekly digest of need-to-know tech news.

Eva Short
By Eva Short

Eva Short was a journalist at Silicon Republic, specialising in the areas of tech, data privacy, business, cybersecurity, AI, automation and future of work, among others.

Loading now, one moment please! Loading