Gaining new skills can open doors to amazing job opportunities. With companies facing talent shortages in many areas, having skills that match labor market needs is key for career success. This guide covers the most in-demand LinkedIn skills to boost your professional value in 2024.
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Why Upskilling Matters
The global skills gap is expected to widen as companies struggle finding talent, especially in high-demand fields like technology, healthcare, finance, and more. By gaining skills aligned to market needs, you make yourself more employable.
Key benefits of upskilling:
- Higher-income potential
- Increased job opportunities
- Career advancement and promotions
- Job security in a volatile market
- Better able to pivot careers if needed
- More fulfilling work leveraging your strengths
When choosing which skills to develop, pay attention to rising labor market demands.
How to Identify In-Demand LinkedIn Skills
The best way to forecast top skills is examining job posting data. LinkedIn analyzes millions of job postings to identify the most in-demand hard and soft skills companies need.
Here are the key sources for identifying top skills:
- LinkedIn Skills Insights: LinkedIn publishes an annual list of the most in-demand hard and soft skills based on global platform data.
- Individual Company Pages: Check LinkedIn company pages in your target industry to see which skills they commonly list in job postings.
- Government Labor Market Reports: Many governments publish job market analytics reporting hiring demand.
- Recruiters and Hiring Managers: Talking to recruiters and hiring managers in your target field can provide insight into priority skills they seek.
- Peers and Colleagues: Connecting with professionals working in roles you aspire to can reveal must-have abilities in that occupation.
Once you identity target skills, the next step is developing them!
According to LinkedIn data, the top 5 soft skills companies need most are creativity, persuasion, collaboration, adaptability and time management. The top 5 hard skills are blockchain, AI, analytical reasoning, UX design and business analysis.
Also read: 8 Best LinkedIn Resume Builders to Convert Your Profile Into a CV
Most In-Demand Hard LinkedIn Skills for 2024
Hard skills are technical abilities that allow you to perform specialized tasks related to a job. They tend to be more measurable and teachable than soft skills.
Here are the top hard skills expected to be most in-demand in 2024 with training recommendations:
1. Blockchain
- Demand for blockchain developers and engineers continues rising exponentially
- Skills Needed: Solidity, Hyperledger, Ethereum, Web3, Cryptography
- Training: Blockchain boot camps, Coursera Cryptocurrency course, Udemy blockchain developer tutorial
2. Artificial Intelligence
- AI adoption growing rapidly across industries
- Skills Needed: Machine learning, Python, R, MATLAB, Tensorflow, Pytorch
- Training: IBM AI Engineering Professional Certificate, Udacity AI Nanodegree
3. Analytical Reasoning
- Critical thinking and data analysis are extremely valued
- Skills Needed: Statistical analysis, data visualization, SQL, spreadsheet modeling
- Training: Google Data Analytics Certificate, Coursera Excel Skills for Business course
4. UX Design
- Important for positive user experiences and conversion-focused design
- Skills Needed: User research, wireframing, prototyping, UI design, web accessibility
- Training: Springboard UX Design Bootcamp, LinkedIn UX Design Essential Training course
5. Business Analysis
- Key role translating business needs into technical requirements
- Skills Needed: Process modeling, data modeling, business case development, stakeholder analysis
- Training: IIBA ECBA Certification, LinkedIn Business Analysis Cert Prep course
Also read: 5 Quick Updates to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile
Most In-Demand Soft LinkedIn Skills for 2024
Soft skills relate to personal qualities and interpersonal abilities. These human skills complement hard skills to boost employability.
Top soft skills forecast for 2024 include:
1. Creativity
- Vital for innovation, problem-solving and adding value
- Develop By: Brainstorming ideas, learning creative methods like design thinking, practicing lateral thinking
2. Persuasion
- Key for influencing stakeholders, pitching ideas, negotiations
- Develop By: Public speaking training, reading persuasion books, building communication skills
3. Collaboration
- Essential for productive teamwork and relationships
- Develop By: Volunteering, group projects, participating in collaboratives like hackathons
4. Adaptability
- Crucial for handling change and uncertainty
- Develop By: Learning new skills, getting out of comfort zone, avoiding rigidity
5. Time Management
- Allows execution efficiently on priorities
- Develop By: Planning systems like GTD, productivity tools, and delegation strategies
Beyond the top 5, additional soft skills like leadership, empathy, responsibility, and initiative will be highly desired by companies.
According to recent data, the easiest soft skills for tech professionals to learn are speaking (63%), leadership (62%), writing (57%) and empathy (53%). The most difficult are management (18%), numeracy (15%), and creativity (14%).
Here are examples of other soft skills training resources:
- Speaking: Toastmasters, LinkedIn online public speaking course
- Writing: Udemy copywriting course, Contena business writing boot camp
- Leadership: Coursera leadership course, LinkedIn learning leadership training videos
- Empathy: Books like The Age of Empathy, practicing active listening and perspective taking
Upskilling LinkedIn Tips
Here are some best practices for continually developing in-demand skills:
Learn High-ROI Skills First
Prioritize skills that offer the best return on time and financial investment for your career goals. For example, Excel modeling skills may be quicker to acquire than a master’s in data science.
Combine Hard and Soft Skills
Employers hire well-rounded candidates. Someone technically skilled but weak in soft skills likely won’t advance as quickly as those with balanced skill sets.
Leverage Low-Cost Resources
Utilize free resources like YouTube tutorials, MOOCs, and federal programs before paying for expensive degrees and boot camps if possible. Some low-cost skill-building options include:
- YouTube: Great for learning technical skills like coding or graphic design
- MOOCs: Massive open online courses like Coursera offer affordable classes from top universities
- Podcasts: Listen to podcasts during a commute to gain valuable industry insights
- Books: Useful for developing soft skills related to psychology, behavior, communication, etc.
- DIY Projects: Start your website, analyze a dataset, build an app – hands-on application accelerates learning
Check if you qualify for subsidized training programs like those offered through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.
Also read: How to contact LinkedIn customer support through its online help center
Leverage Skill-Building Tools
Platforms like LinkedIn Learning and Udemy have thousands of courses taught by industry experts to build both hard skills and soft skills. Here are the top skill-building tools used by professionals:
| Skill-Building Tool | Details |
|---|---|
| LinkedIn Learning | 4,000+ courses and certificates from top universities like Stanford and the University of Michigan |
| Udemy | 187,000+ online courses on programming, marketing, design, more |
| Coursera | 187,000+ online courses on programming, marketing, design, and more |
| Udacity | Nanodegree programs co-created with high-tech employers like AWS, Google, IBM |
| edX | 3,000+ courses from institutions like Harvard and MIT in subjects like data science, leadership, finance |
94% of employees would stay at a company longer if it invested in their career development. Make sure to discuss upskilling opportunities with your manager!
Earn Respected Certifications
While you don’t need to get every badge imaginable, strategic certs indicating mastery of high-value skills can improve hiring and pay. Relevant examples include:
- Google Analytics Individual Qualification for Digital Marketing Roles
- PMP Certification for Project Managers
- CBAP Certification for Business Analysts
- Microsoft Certified Azure Developer Associate for cloud engineers
Work on Real Projects
Apply developing skills to create professional portfolio pieces displaying your capabilities. For designers, provide UX work samples. For engineers, contribute to open-source programming projects.
Know Your Blindspots
Self-assess skills confidentially using tools like LinkedIn Skills Assessments and Flockjay. Then focus development efforts on lower-scoring areas.
Showcase Skills Socially
Share skill-building journey updates and career achievements on sites like LinkedIn to rally support and motivate progress through accountability.
In-Demand LinkedIn Skills By Industry
While some skills like leadership and collaboration apply across functions, others align to specific industries. Make sure to analyze in-demand skills for your field.
For those exploring a career pivot, evaluate transferable skills from your current role while developing priority abilities for your target industry.
Here are currently in-demand skills by top industries:
Technology
- Cloud computing
- Artificial intelligence
- Data Science
- Cybersecurity
- Blockchain
Healthcare
- Patient care
- Healthcare Administration
- Data analysis
- Precision medicine
- Telehealth operations
Finance
- Risk management
- Regulatory compliance
- Data analytics + visualization
- Financial modeling
- Fraud prevention
Manufacturing
- Computer-aided design (CAD)
- Industrial automation
- Supply chain optimization
- Quality assurance
- Advanced data analysis
Marketing
- SEO/SEM
- Social media marketing
- Content marketing
- Video production
- Conversion rate optimization
The World Economic Forum report on emerging jobs estimates that 50% of workers will require significant reskilling by 2025 as the adoption of technology increases and new roles emerge. Get ahead of the curve by continually developing future-proof in-demand skills!
Also read: How to Write a Professional LinkedIn Headline
FAQ’s
Conclusion
Mastering high-value skills aligning to current and future labor market needs has never been more important for career success. Whether looking to reskill into an emerging field like AI or gain a competitive edge in your current profession, continual upskilling and real-world application will ensure you and your talents remain in-demand.
What skills are you working on developing? Which abilities are you seeing rise most in priority from employers and colleagues? Share your experiences navigating the rapidly changing workplace landscape to help others identify key skills to boost their professional value!
