Business Innovation
12 min read

Working digitally: how to find a new digital profession with a reskilling path

Written by Talent Garden Talent Garden
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Digital Transformation is a phenomenon that is affecting all sectors of the economy, not to mention its growing importance in e-government programs that are gradually changing how citizens interact with the government and vice versa. The recent pandemic emergency has done nothing but speed up a now unstoppable process that sees and will see a growing demand for professionals equipped with the appropriate skills to a digital world of work. To prevent this phenomenon from resulting in the expulsion of an excessive number of workers from the market, the Reskilling pathways become fundamental to acquire skills and knowledge useful for performing new tasks, often even far from the qualification obtained, and face different duties to the ones carried out up to now. But what does “Digital Profession” refer to? We can answer this question by analyzing in detail the most sought-after roles in a landscape that is increasingly influenced by technology.

Digital Profession: definition

The Digital Professional is not necessarily a technician, so this category does not include only those who work in sectors such as programming, management of IT systems, installation of electronic components or database management. On the other hand, we can include in this definition anyone who uses digital tools to do their job. Internet websites, Apps for mobile devices, Desktop computer programs, Machine Learning algorithms, Artificial Intelligence technologies, databases, messaging platforms, audio/video streaming services and social media are just some of the solutions that can be part of the working life of a digital Professional. Often, some of these tools thus become priorities for carrying out a task, however, more and more often, even extremely specialized profiles need a full-stack knowledge that allows them to maximize the benefits of the tools offered by Digitization. A Digital Profession can, and frequently does, have a connection to STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), but also operators with soft skills, such as trainers, HR Managers and communications managers, fall into this category.

The most demanded digital profiles

Now that we've defined the Digital Professions in broad terms, we may characterize the ones that are now in high demand on the market, keeping in mind that, in an ever-changing environment, the proposed list may need to be updated.

SEO Specialist

The term SEO (Search Engine Optimization) refers to all the techniques that allow you to optimize the content of a digital property for search engines. Due to an increasingly aggressive competition, gaining the top positions on Google (and not only) SERP (Search Engine Results Page) is now more difficult than in the past, for this reason companies require professionals with a strong knowledge on crawlers who are able to select the best performing keywords, manage link building campaigns, guide designers in arranging layout components and coordinate creators with a view to optimization and ranking.

Digital Advertising Specialist

Digital Advertising Specialists are professionals who design, organize, monitor, analyze, update and improve online advertising campaigns. Their skills include the operating performing platforms for advertising, from search engines (such as Google Ads and Microsoft Ads) to generalist social networks (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Twitter...) and specialist social networks (such as LinkedIn). Their tasks usually take place within teams, where Content Creators, Designers, SEO Specialists and Analysts participate in the various stages of the life cycle of an advertising campaign.

YouTuber

YouTubers are audiovisual content creators that finance their work through advertising, subscriptions, and sponsorships on Google's well-known platform. They can also be a company's internal collaborators tasked with generating videos that strengthen the brand or that highlight the benefits of a product or service. In any case, they must be able to communicate in a way that has an impact and appeal on the audience. The published content can be pre-produced or broadcast live, the use of the latter mode is not only typical of YouTubers and is instead the fulcrum of Twitch’s success, owned by Amazon, where numerous users (including some well-known YouTubers) share their live broadcasts.

Data Scientist

Data Scientists are experts in data analysis who have the task of obtaining insights, that is, relevant information to address decision-making processes, identify market trends and predict future trends. Even Data Scientists work in teams with other professionals, such as Data Engineers who are entrusted with the procedures for processing and preparing data for analysis. Their skills include the operation of DBMS (Database Management System), database management, statistical analysis, Big Data organization, mastery of Business Intelligence tools and quite often the knowledge of highly oriented programming languages to data like R and Python.

UX/UI Designer

The design and implementation of UX (User Experience) and UI (User Interface) is a crucial phase for the success of an application or a website, in fact it is difficult for a platform to be able to receive consents if it lacks an intuitive interface that is able to provide a smooth, immersive and pleasant user experience. The skills of UX and UI Designers range from knowledge of development languages for the Web to the use of standards for graphics and photo editing such as Adobe Photoshop, from HCD (Human Centered Design) to tools for testing prototypes, up to an in-depth knowledge of the principles of usability and accessibility.

Social Media Manager

Social Media Managers deals with all aspects concerning the communication of a company through social networks, their tasks and goals therefore include the planning of Social Media Marketing strategies based on the various reference platforms, the Content Creation, the increase in incoming traffic to the organization’s websites, and the evaluation of the data obtained through the metrics offered by the social networks used. They are also professionals who must know how to expand their community, interact with it, provide answers, and moderate the content posted by users, all with the goal of strengthening the brand that they represent on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, or LinkedIn, to name a few of the most popular, which they must be extremely knowledgeable about.

E-commerce Manager

Over the last few years, also as a result of the restrictions related to individual mobility due to the lockdowns of 2020 and 2021, e-commerce has undergone a strong driving force. At the same time, the demand for professionals able to manage an e-commerce business has increased, taking care of any aspects concerning the creation of a platform, the identification of the best solutions for logistics, the management of orders and sales, and the coordination of pre and post-sales assistance. In order to offer guarantees from the point of view of results, E-Commerce Managers must have skills in Digital Marketing and Web Marketing, including notions on the main SEO techniques and the functioning of any social media. Proficiency in data analysis and in using Analytics tools are also required, as well as soft skills relating to management and organizational skills.

Web and App Developer

Websites, Web applications, e-commerce platforms, mobile applications are just some of the solutions that developers can implement or update during their daily work and, even in the Italian market where the demand for code professionals far exceeds the supply, it is an increasingly sought-after profile. The skills of the developers concern above all the languages used, for this reason a professional specialized in Internet solutions will have skills on Web standards such as HTML, CSS or JavaScript, while a mobile App developer will have an in-depth knowledge of languages such as Kotlin (for Android) or Swift (for iOS). They also must be adequately trained in databases, Web services, Web hosting management and the use of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) for interacting with external platform services.

Cyber Security Specialist

Cyber security issues are becoming increasingly relevant in a way of working that is highly digitized but also carried out remotely to fulfill the needs of persons who operate in teleworking and smart working. As a result, the Cyber Security Specialist is critical in ensuring the safety of technical infrastructures, managed data, collaborators, and users. These professionals must possess a variety of skills, including the ability to work with network architectures, routing protocols, vulnerability management systems, and process automation languages. They must also possess the fundamental skills required to analyze business processes and maximize security, not to mention the fact that there is frequently a coordinator responsible for aspects such as Cyber Security training and compliance with data processing procedures in accordance with current regulations.

Conclusion

Reskilling pathways are essential to upskill your existing professional skills in a labor market characterized by Digital Transformation. To adequately prepare for the ongoing change, it is useful to take part in a specific training course, such as the Business Innovation Master offered by Talent Garden. Organized in blended mode, the master’s course is divided into on-demand content, live online learning sessions and in-person lessons. The overall duration is 6 weekends, of which 4 are live online and 2 in-person held at the Calabiana Campus of Talent Garden, located in Milan. This is a training course open to IT Managers, Junior and Middle Managers, Project Managers, Consultants, Advisors and Digital Strategists with at least 3 years of work experience in the IT or Business Management field. The ideal candidate is a person with an analytical and creative mindset who wants to stay up to date on the latest industry news and trends.
Article updated on: 09 August 2023
Talent Garden
Written by
Talent Garden, Digital Skills Academy

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