It was hardly surprising that Singapore topped the WEF’s Global Information Technology Report 2016 as The World’s Most Tech-Ready Country. Authorities have been at the vanguard of several initiatives to make themselves a smart nation, and more importantly, technology a national capability.
Among these, the CODE@SG movement is distinct in that it introduces children as young as 6 years to coding and computational thinking, as part of their school curricula. A separate programme offers specialised boot camps for young trainees and new graduates from a spectrum of industries, but with no prior background or experience in technology.
In an April speech, Yaacob Ibrahim, Singapore’s Minister of Communications and Information explained this emphasis on technology training: “As demand far outstrips current supply, and because the landscape is changing so rapidly, it is difficult to meet company needs for skilled manpower. We must do our best to support our Singaporeans to be highly skilled so that they can compete with global talent.”
While Singapore is ardently addressing the need for people familiar with a variety of tech skills, who are also sensitive to how tech can be applied to improve living, the concept can hardly be contained within the city state. In the UAE, examples include the American University in the Emirates (AUE) that opened its Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre in June, equipped with technologies such as 3D printing, MAC Laboratories and Maxon 4D, with a view to create ‘graduate leaders with high employability.’ Meanwhile, September will see the launch of the Sunmarke School in Dubai. The completely technology-enabled STEM school will offer MultiSmart Learning, a programme that combines science, technology, digital literacy, engineering and design and maths with creative learning to prepare children for a technologically-advanced world.
Tech, short for technology and also referred to as IT, ICT or infocomms, is a group of techniques, skills, methods and processes used in the production of goods or services. It can be in the form of knowledge, or specific skills involved in operating devices, computers, machines and even factories.
Once the exclusive domain of IT professionals, tech skills are now considered necessary for several professions. College students in a variety of academic pursuits agree that possessing tech skills will take them further, and they also expect to master new technologies after entering the workforce.
Payscale’s Workforce-Skills Preparedness Report 2016, draws attention to this fact, as they surveyed 63,924 managers and 14,167 recent graduates earlier this year. The online salary, benefits and compensation information firm focussed on the skills gap in their global report: how prepared recent college graduates are for the work force versus what skills hiring managers are most likely to consider absent or deficient in them. Tellingly, 36 per cent of managers found their recently graduated hires to be lacking in data analysis talents and knowledge of computer programmes like Excel, Tableau, Python and R.
New professionals must possess at least basic tech skills in order to find lucrative and fulfilling jobs, and thereafter build successful careers. Possessing these skills also make them more valuable in the eyes of prospective employees – irrespective of industry.
Swapnil Nair, a 15-year-old student at Dubai’s GEMS World Academy has just completed Stanford University’s pre-collegiate course, Investigations in Bioscience and Biotechnology, and he says that although it is too early to make decisions, this will influence him when he chooses a college, and later, a career. “The course covered ideas and methods from a range of academic disciplines spanning the sciences, engineering and medicine. It gave me a solid grounding and also, a window into the future.
“For me, as a student, it is all about being ready - for all of tomorrow’s technologies. And of course, the workplace,” he says succinctly.
“The impact of technological innovation takes time to appear and influence different sectors, but one of the most dramatic transformations has been in the travel industry,” explains Sharjah-based freelance travel consultant Alka Dinesh.
“Consumers don’t need to interact physically with a travel agent, like they used to, or rely on him or her for information and confirmation. As travel agents lost their sense of importance, the only ones who survive and thrive are those who are skilled, adept and nimble with technology.”
Tech is pervading the most unlikely industries too. A global report from analytics platform DataXu says understanding marketing technologies is an increasingly important skill for career success in marketing, ranking second only to creativity. According to the July report, 80 per cent of marketers in Continental Europe already employ a Chief Marketing Technologist (CMT) whose job is to focus on technology, analytics and data. The numbers stood at 63 per cent in the UK, and 53 per cent in the US.
“Unlike a traditional CMO role, the CMT role bridges the knowledge gap between marketing and technology by offering expertise in both disciplines,” says Chris Le May, DataXu’s SVP and Managing Director of Europe & Emerging Markets. “It also brings new perspectives from someone who can advise and lead on areas such as procurement, management of marketing technologies and the team structure required below them.”
In the field of hospitality, experts say digital strategies and digital engagement will be game changers.
“Hospitality and technology will only become more intertwined as time goes on, so a thorough understanding of the latter will serve you regardless of your career trajectory,” writes Larry Mogelonsky, Founder of LMA Communications, and the world's most published author in the field of hospitality, in a recent column. “This might require innovation at the board level, where disruption might be necessary to support change
Earlier this year, LinkedIn announced that cloud computing skills have progressed from being niche to mainstream, and it was ranked the world’s most in-demand skill set in their report, 25 skills that could get you hired in 2016. Concurrently, statistical analysis and data mining were ranked among the top four skills, across all surveyed countries.
About 20 of the 25 skills they list fall under the technology competency, but these skills are not restricted to tech-dominated industries.
The University of California at San Diego Extension’s Emerging Careers Report 2016, highlights a variety of jobs that call for tech skills. According to the report, there is growing demand for IT skills in healthcare to deliver applications and data to improve care, with big areas including cyber security, data analytics and app programming. They also predict growth for IT auditors, a unique area where an applicant will need both IT and auditing skills.
“Employment opportunities are strong for individuals who never stop learning,” says Dr. Mary L. Walshok, Associate Vice Chancellor of Public Programs and Dean of Extension in her foreword to the report.
“Clearly, a broad, general education can provide an essential foundation for careers such as management, leadership, sales, and marketing. However, individuals will be much more competitive in these fields if they add a component of technical education and training to their general education.
“The bottom line is it is no longer sufficient to be good at one thing.”
New tech for old jobs
Tech skills are not limited to the exclusive purview of emerging careers, and many industries that have hitherto been looked upon as old school, are dishing up brand new challenges for the next generation.
Marketer: Will have to be well versed in SMIC, the acronym for social platforms, mobile applications, information (big data) and cloud computing.
Health care professional: Will need to be adept with data management, electronic medical records, wearable tech and telemedicine, among others
Hotelier: Will need to be familiar with at least the basics of digital strategies, analytics and user experience
Finance professional: Will need to embrace fintech, a term that covers everything from simple online banking to sophisticated computerised trading systems.
Architect: Must be able to look beyond design to incorporate 3D printing and digital fabrication, and solar and green technologies
Get started
Our pick of courses available in the UAE will help you make some of the right choices to get started
Certified Young Business Professional (CYBP): Global standard introduction for young people to the world of business; newhorizons.ae
Web design, management and SEO: Design and non-design aspects of building websites; middleeast.etoninstitute.com
Microsoft Office Excel: Certificate programme in using applications; aceit-training.com
Hardware and Networking: Essentials of physical components and networking; laimoon.com/uae
Primavera P6: Global standard high performance project management; timetraining.ae
Computerised Accounting: Tally, Peachtree or Quick Books accounting software; netscopeme.com
Introduction to Cloud Computing Technologies: Building, deploying and implementation strategies; theknowledgeacademy.com
