Which skills will set you up for success in the future workforce?

The world of work was already undergoing a rapid shift before the COVID-19 crisis expedited change in ways even the most adept forecasters could never have predicted.

Standard technical capabilities and academic skills, once the measure of a person’s suitability for a particular job or career, remain valuable but they are no longer the key drivers for success in the future workforce.

In fact, there’s been a shift away from a heavy reliance on traditional qualifications to an increased criteria for demonstrated employability skills such as creativity, complex problem solving, emotional intelligence and critical thinking.

Amanda McIntyre, PWC Partner in the Government and Public Sector leadership team and a future of work expert, says this shift means that social skills are set to be in higher demand in the new workforce.

“Overall, social skills, such as persuasion, emotional intelligence and teaching others, will be in higher demand across industries than narrow technical skills, such as programming or equipment operation and control,” she says. 

“The key future work skills align to those articulated by the OECD - complex problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, people management, working with others, emotional intelligence, good judgement and decision making, being service orientated and negotiation skills.”

“In essence, technical skills will become the foundation for our careers, but fulfilling careers and career options will come about when we supplement these skills with strong social and collaboration skills.”

McIntyre says to develop these skills it is crucial for people considering tertiary study and future work prospects to as a first step, find something they are actually passionate about.

“You are likely to be in the workforce for 40 years or more, so it is important that you find work that you are engaged by and that aligns with your preferences,” she says.

“Secondly, try to understand the skills that today’s employers are looking for.”

”It could be creativity, problem solving, or an understanding of how digital technology can be used to help their people think, act and thrive in a digital world that is much less predictable than we once thought.”

McIntyre says contemplating a future career pathway needs to include not simply attaining the relevant qualification but understanding and acquiring the additional employability skills to support it.

“Think about the skills that you want to build, not just attaining a qualification.”

For instance, a vocational education and training program (VET) might be more appropriate than undertaking a tertiary degree.

Or alternatively, work experience combined with part-time study might allow you to gain valuable on-the-job training, or enable you to practice your decision making and build your ability to work with others.

Volunteer work may also be another avenue that might help you build practical problem solving skills.” 

McIntyre also says the current COVID-19 crisis has had an unprecedented impact on the future of work in terms of both where we work and how we conduct work. 

She says one of the key changes is that the pandemic and the wide-scale remote working it has necessitated has brought forward flexibility and mobility in the way that we do work, which will have far-reaching impacts on businesses and employees.  

“The impacts from COVID-19 will likely add to the pressure on productivity that organisations were already facing. 

Across both the public and private sectors, how we use our office spaces will be questioned and challenged as the workforce returns to physical office space, and some may question what the purpose of the office is.

I suspect that being present for the sake of it will disappear, which has many advantages for workers with a disability, caring responsibilities or long commutes,” she says. 

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