Top jobs and in-demand skills in 2022

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NTUC LearningHub’s recently launched Emerging Jobs and Skills Report has uncovered the top jobs which employers are looking to fill and the most in-demand skills across the board.

The report included a survey of over 650 working professionals from Singapore in December 2021. The respondents include both employers and employees from across the six main industry clusters in Singapore, with the aim of uncovering a dual perspective about the current job market, emerging jobs and skills, as well as the training landscape.

Across industries, the top job roles employers are hiring for are in Data Analysis (54%), Digital Marketing (45%), and Strategy & Operations (45%), with the exception of the Essential Domestic Services cluster, where Data Visualisation (59%) tops the list of job roles.

This is followed by Data Analysis (55%), and Data Management (55%). In fact, this is the only cluster where all employers (100%) indicate that their company will increase digitalisation to either a ‘large’ or ‘some’ extent to achieve stronger business outcomes.

Top 10 job roles across sectors:

1. Data Analysis (54%)

2. Digital Marketing (45%)

3. Strategy and Operations (45%)

4. Data Visualisation (42%)

5. Digital Strategy (41%)

6. Probability & Statistics (34%)

7. Machine Learning (32%)

8. Social Media Marketing (32%)

9. Big Data (31%)

10. Public Relations (30%)

In terms of skills competency when hiring, employers are looking at candidates with Critical Core Skills and technology skills. Across industries, the top Critical Core Skills or adaptive skills employers are looking to hire talent for are Adaptability (52%), Developing People (48%) and Collaboration (44%). On the other hand, the top Technology Skills employers are looking to hire are Data Analysis (49%), Cybersecurity (45%) and Digital Marketing (44%).

Top 10 Critical Core Skills across sectors:

1. Adaptability (52%)

2. Developing People (48%)

3. Collaboration (44%)

4. Communication (43%)

5. Creative Thinking (42%)

6. Problem Solving (40%)

7. Decision Making (37%)

8. Learning Agility (36%)

9. Digital Fluency (32%)

10. Global Perspective (29%)

Top 10 technology skills across sectors:

1. Data Analysis (49%)

2. Cybersecurity (45%)

3. Digital Marketing (44%)

4. Project Management (42%)

5. Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning (41%)

6. Data-Driven Decision-Making (35%)

7. Basic IT Support (30%)

8. Governance, Risk Management and Personal Data Protection (28%)

9. Web / App Design &Development (28%)

10. Robotic Process Automation (24%)

Commenting on the findings, NTUC LearningHub’s Director of Strategy, Soh Hooi Peng says, “These insights on the in-demand job roles and skills are a useful resource for workers who are looking to stay employable and competitive.

“Much like the Critical Core Skills, which are foundational and transferrable competencies that are applicable to everyone, these top technology skills will also enable workers to boost their skillsets and keep pace with digitalisation.

“Acquiring these skills can certainly benefit workers, regardless of their sectors or functions, to adapt well to digital transformation and efficiently navigate workplace disruptions.”

“In addition, many of the top job roles, which employers across industries are looking to hire, are digital in nature,” she continues.

“Individuals who have an interest in pursuing the technology-related jobs can start by upskilling in tech-lite skills such as Digital Marketing and Data Analytics, even if they are inexperienced.

“For those who are keen on acquiring deep-tech skills, they could deepen their knowledge in high-growth areas such as Machine Learning and Big Data (Data Engineering), as the career trajectories for talent in such roles are very promising due to the talent crunch in these fields.”