Companies are key to solving the digital skills gap

By

Vala Afshar

| June 21, 2021 — 13:00 GMT (14:00 BST)

| Topic: Digital Transformation

In order to reduce the digital skills gap, all companies need to see themselves as education companies.

I sat down with Salesforce’s Chief Innovation Officer, Simon Mulcahy, for his insight on what’s driving the digital skills shortage and how companies can contribute to closing the gap. 

Simon Mulcahy, chief innovation officer at Salesforce 

Vala Afshar: When we talk about the digital skills gap, what do we really mean?

Simon Mulcahy: Fundamentally, it’s an issue of supply and demand: a mismatch between the need for a digitally savvy workforce and the availability of workers trained in those skills. Every organization — whether a bank, healthcare company or retailer — is becoming a digital organization. Core digital skills aren’t the purview of a single department but increasingly hard-wired into nearly every job on the planet. 

On the flip side, there’s a massive shortage in the skills needed to operate and lead in a digital-first environment. More importantly, there’s no mechanism in place to fix it. 

VA: What kinds of skills are in high demand?

SM: Of course, we need workers with technical expertise in things like coding, artificial intelligence, user experience design and cloud computing. But we also need people who have the soft skills necessary to leverage technology to solve real-world problems. 

Every business unit needs to know how to craft digital experiences that serve customers effectively. Managers need to train and empower employees in a digital-first world. And executives and boards need to be digitally savvy enough to navigate issues like cybersecurity and privacy. 

VA: What are some of the biggest reasons behind the digital skills gap?

SM: Even before the pandemic, most industries were undergoing major digital transformation. Technology has evolved at lightning speed, and customers have increasingly demanded personalized service on their channel of choice. Companies have faced enormous pressure to reinvent themselves in order to stay competitive, which has fueled demand for digital skills. 

COVID-19 dramatically accelerated this migration to digital, pushing companies of every size around the world to digitize at record speed. The pandemic ushered in a seismic mindset shift around how we live, work and consume, which has only widened the already large skills gap.

As a contrast to the rapid pace of innovation, we’ve seen stasis when it comes to arming workers with the right capabilities. Historically, education has been viewed as a one-time experience you complete early on and leverage throughout your career. With the exception of executive training, the system is still set up this way. This dated mindset means that a large percentage of the world has not acquired the skills they need to prepare for a quickly digitizing world. 

VA: The G20 countries could miss out on trillions of dollars in growth if nothing changes. If we don’t do anything to address the digital skills crisis now, what would the impact be? 

SM: People are hungry for products and services they can consume digitally. If that happens effectively, then money changes hands, and the demand fuels economic growth. In a world where that doesn’t happen, growth is constrained, and there’s more demand for fewer things. The price of those optimal digital offerings goes up, and you’ll see winners and losers. 

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By

Vala Afshar

| June 21, 2021 — 13:00 GMT (14:00 BST)

| Topic: Digital Transformation