Three IT-related skills are among the ten most popular LinkedIn Learning classes taken by Australians from July 2019 to June 2020, as well as several soft skills of benefit to IT pros.
Those courses related to IT pros are Learning Python, Remote Work Foundations, and Project Management Foundations. The soft skills of benefit to IT pros are Strategic Thinking, Time Management, Developing Your Emotional Intelligence, and Learning Personal Branding.
Here are the top ten LinkedIn Learning courses taken by Australians over that 12-month period:
- Strategic Thinking
- Learning Python
- Excel 2016 Essential Training
- Excel Essential Training (Office 365)
- Remote Work Foundations
- Time Management: Working from Home
- Developing Your Emotional Intelligence
- Project Management Foundations
- Learning Personal Branding
- Jodi Glickman on Pitching Yourself
According to LinkedIn, workers are picking up transferable skills to help them succeed in whatever venture they take, especially as the market becomes more competitive and many are forced to switch industries.
There was a 153 percent increase in total hours spent on LinkedIn Learning in Australia, according to the report. "LinkedIn members spent over 113,000 hours learning in July 2020 alone, compared to over 39,000 in July 2019," Jason Laufer, Asia Pacific senior director of learning solutions and Glint wrote in a blog post..
An earlier study from Hays found that although there was a hiring freeze among Australian businesses (19 percent), 35 percent of local organisations were still hiring, with the top area of focus being IT professionals.
Unfortunately that wasn't enough to keep Australian IT jobs safe. With the overall unemployment rate for Australia going from 5.1 per cent in February 2020 to 7.4 per cent in June 2020, the Australian Bureau of Statistics quarterly report revealed 6,900 information, media and telecommunications professionals were out of work in May 2020.
The good news is that the IT industry remains one of the strongest, with unemployment numbers being lower than all other sectors but one, the utilities and waste services.