Digital skills have come to stay, let nobody tell you otherwise. In fact, it is a welcome development. It seems like a novelty, however, it is not a new development but rather an evolving development.

Digital skills have become so crucial so much so that an individual needs to acquire them to remain relevant in today’s workspace.

With the development of artificial intelligence, the need for man to carry out certain tasks are being eroded, this raises the question of what to do in such a situation? Why do you need to have digital skills? what skills to acquire or improve on? When to start? Where and how to remain relevant in today’s digital workspace?

The future of the digital space is already being shaped by these digital skills, yet there is a gap in the number of digital jobs available and the number of people who are trained to work on it. It is more important to note that these digital jobs are shaping the economy.

According to International Telecommunication Union (ITU) data, despite the rapid growth in Internet penetration over the past five years, under half the world’s people (3.7 billion) still do not use the Internet. In their recent research, 87% of people use the Internet in developed countries, compared with 44% in developing countries. This has also helped in intensifying the digital skills gap and leaving consequences in its wake. 

Coronavirus pandemic made us realize the importance of digital skills and the future of businesses.  Most businesses suffered during the pandemic because a tangible percentage of their workforce have little or no prior knowledge of basic digital skills. 

This is a gap that can be breached, being a person with digital skills in today’s economy is a top-notch advantage because organizations are in need of people who possess these skills in their force.

Technology has made everything so much easier than acquiring digital skills should not be a problem. There are training put together by companies and individuals to contribute their quota in ensuring that people are geared towards the digital future. 

Who needs digital skills?

 For every pivotal change that occurs in our world, there are people who buy into it immediately, those who follow a little later and of course the late adopters, who don’t buy into the change until it’s almost too late and a pressing situation warrants it. We could say in this part of our world, we are the late adopters. The pandemic has reinforced the need for digital skills; however, the question still remains on who needs digital skills?

It will interest you to know that the digital space has no discrimination. EVERYBODY needs digital skills. The world is not static, the same applies to everything in it including businesses, companies and individuals. Businesses and organizations are looking for ways to make things easier for their clients and employees and to do this, there’s a need to embrace the knowledge of digital technology

Why do you need to have Digital Skills?

It is probably beginning to sound cliche that digital skills are here to stay and are shaping the future, but that is a technological fact and not a myth.

It is important to note that digital skills are now part of essential requirements for a job position. Here, we are talking about basic digital skills, however, there are other professions that require advanced digital skills. Interestingly, having basic digital skills is not enough, the more digital skills you have, the more opportunities you can enjoy.

• Digital skills set you apart in today’s workspace. The digital gap is so vast that having an individual with digital skills will help businesses and organizations as they progress in the digital world. Having the skills as an entrepreneur will also reflect the growth of your business. Remember, digital skills are for everybody.
• Digital skills make jobs easier. With digital skills, jobs are done easily and can even be done from home or on the move. A job done easily is delivered faster. Digital technology has come to make things easy for man, why not grab the skills and make things easier for you, people around you, and your organization.
• With over 1billion users and more using the internet, as a business owner, this is a market waiting to be explored but how do you reach them if you don’t have the digital skills or how do they get to know about your business if these skills are not utilized.
• Future jobs are technology-oriented and will require a tech-savvy individual. The demand for  digital skills will only increase and to make a difference, you need to acquire the skills now

Finally, the pandemic has drawn our attention to a very serious gap in the digital realm and the great need to have the skills that will fill the gap. It is imperative to know that having these skills is one thing, implementing them is another but more importantly, constantly improving on these skills is the icing on the cake. This ensures that your value as a digital literate doesn’t depreciate with time. The digital world will always spin to something new and you need to spin alongside it.