These Are the Most in-Demand Skills in 2023

There’s a big shift on the horizon when it comes to what employers are looking for in workers.

An influx of new technologies and new customer demands means the skills that have historically been a big help to job seekers might not be as useful as they look to continue along their career path. And that’s true in a wide category of jobs, not just the tech and white-collar world.

The 2023 Future of Jobs report from the World Economic Forum estimates 44% of workers’ core skills will likely change in the next five years, as technology moves faster than companies can scale their training programs.

“Six in 10 workers will require training before 2027, but only half of workers are seen to have access to adequate training opportunities today,” the report reads.

When it comes to the most in-demand traits for this year, companies say they’re looking for workers with cognitive skills, with analytical thinking topping the list. Creative thinking is the runner up.

Companies don’t want workers who are incapable of adapting to change. There’s significant demand, also for resilience, flexibility and agility as well as motivation and self-awareness. Tying in with that, curiosity was the fifth most sought-after skill, followed by empathy and leadership/social influence. 

“While respondents judged no skills to be in net decline, sizable minorities of companies judge reading, writing and mathematics; global citizenship; sensory-processing abilities; and manual dexterity, endurance and precision to be of declining importance for their workers,” the report reads.

Some of those top skills for this year are expected to be just as critical in the future. A separate query by the WEF asked companies to estimate the skills that are growing in importance and will be most critical in the next five years. The two top responses were the same as the 2023 list, only reversed:

1. Creative thinking
2. Analytical thinking
3. Technological literacy
4. Curiosity/lifelong learning
5. Resilience, flexibility and agility
6. Systems thinking
7. AI and big data
8. Motivation and self-awareness
9. Talent management
10. Service orientation and customer services

“Companies rank AI and big data 12 places higher in their skills strategies than in their evaluation of core skills, and report that they will invest an estimated 9% of their reskilling efforts in it – a greater proportion than the more highly-ranked creative thinking, indicating that though AI and big data is part of fewer strategies, it tends to be a more important element when it is included,” says the report.

To help existing workers gain those skills, 82% of the companies the WEF spoke with said they are planning to invest in learning and training on the job. A focus on AI and big data will be one of the biggest focuses, with 42% of the surveyed companies saying they plan to prioritize those two.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

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Future of Work Careers Jobs & Unemployment