Preparing for the future: an increasingly digital workforce

The National Broadband Network Co (NBN) released a report in 2019 following research into the future of the Australian job market. And the results are clear - it's time to start preparing for the future: an increasingly digital workforce

Their research confirms that Australia is in the midst of an unmistakable shift towards a more digital economy. In fact, their analysis reveals that more than 90 per cent of Australia’s workforce will be either using, configuring or building digital technology at work by 2030. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has, in many ways, accelerated the saturation of technology across the workforce. 

The CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella shared in April 2020 that Microsoft had seen two years’ worth of digital transformation in just two months. 

So, what does this mean for workers?

Looking for work in the digital economy

For workers and those looking for work, this research suggests an increasingly urgent need to prioritise the development of your digital literacy. 

It's time to start preparing for the future: an increasingly digital workforce.

For those who have had their employment affected or career disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, now may provide an ideal opportunity for you to reconsider your career plans for the future.

If retraining or upskilling has felt out of reach, it’s important to know there are low cost and even free options for you to explore. 

We’re going to look at a range of the free options provided by Microsoft in conjunction with LinkedIn Learning.​

Microsoft and LinkedIn learning 

Technology powerhouse Microsoft has partnered with LinkedIn and with the support of the Department of Education, Skills and Employment (DESE) to offer a range of free digital skills resources for for workers and individuals searching for employment. 

In light of the changing nature of the workforce and in particular those changes wrought by COVID-19, it is their aim to support Australians to reskill and upskill and prepare for the digital economy of the future.  

The global skills initiative is aimed at bringing more digital skills to 25 million people worldwide by the end of the year.

The teams have developed a range of free short courses, designed for people who are ready to explore new and different career paths in in-demand IT areas.

What are the courses?

Project Managers

Financial Analyst

Digital Marketing Specialist

Graphic Designer

Data Analyst

Software Developer

It Administrator + It Support Desk Technician

While the courses may not provide all that you need to begin a new career, they will provide an excellent and free way for you to explore possible career options. They may allow you to confirm whether a particular career path that interests you is suited to you. Each course will give you a solid grounding in the subject matter to prepare you for further study. 

For those people who already have skills and qualifications, these courses may also provide complementary skills and knowledge while also proving to potential employers your willingness to continue learning and adapting to our changing world.

So get ready to reskill or upskill.

In a nutshell, the LinkedIn Learning courses are:

• Delivered online
• Free
• Self-paced
• Taught by industry experts
• Designed to take students step-by-step through each skill area
• Providing those with a LinkedIn account a “badge of completion” that will display on their LinkedIn profile (this makes the learning easily visible learning to prospective employers).

Those looking to take advantage of this opportunity are invited to investigate more about the LinkedIn learning opportunities. We’ve outlined the more IT-focused courses below. Information has been sourced from LinkedIn Learning.

Project Manager

Project managers are catalysts for change. 

If you like making sure projects – big or small – are done well, within budget and within a certain timeframe, you might enjoy a career in project management.

According to Seek there are currently over 25,000 Project Manager jobs available across numerous industries in Australia right now.

In the Project Management learning pathway, you can learn how to manage projects from beginning to end, keep it on time, in budget and in scope using proven project management techniques. 

You will practice using Microsoft Project and develop essential project management skills and proven techniques. 

This course takes around 17 hours to complete. 

Financial Analyst

Do you enjoy numbers? Financial analysts are in high demand and the demand for skills financial analysts is expected to grow.

A financial analyst evaluates current and historical economic and business data to identify trends and make recommendations that influence business decisions. 

In the Financial Analyst course, you will learn the skills that make a successful financial analyst, including understanding financial statements, working with economic data, and analytical analysis skills.

The LinkedIn Learning course covers 10 modules over 17 hours.
 

Digital Marketing Specialist

Digital marketing specialists use analytical and tactical skills to help grow and develop new opportunities for businesses. They apply best practices and principles when it comes to digital marketing, marketing plans, content strategy, search engine optimisation (SEO) and analytics.

Over 26 hours of learning you will train in Google Analytics and Google Ads, design marketing materials using the Adobe suite and explore marketing channels like social media and email. 

The Australian government's JobOutlook expects future demand for marketing and advertising professionals to be “Very Strong” and according to Seek there are currently thousands of employers in Australia looking for people with digital marketing skills.

Begin your Digital Marketing Specialist learning.
 

Graphic Designer

Most of us enjoy colour, images and animations and these kinds of things that we enjoy looking at have typically been created by graphic designers.

Graphic designers create visual concepts that inspire, inform, and transform and JobOutlook by the Australian Government predict Graphic and Web Designers, and Illustrators can expect strong future growth in demand. 

In the graphic design learning pathway, you can use industry-leading tools to build innovative design projects and discover the skills needed to become an in-demand visual thinker and communicator.

You can build a solid foundation in the elements of design including typography, colour and layout, explore the design process to visualise compelling ideas, practice with hands on exercises in InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop. 

The course will take just under 30 hours. 
 

Data Analyst

Data analysts examine information using data analysis tools and help their teams develop insights and business strategies. 

Sometimes job titles like this sound complicated but if you enjoy investigating and analyzing numbers and information, a career in data analysis may just be for you.

Over 24 hours of self-paced learning, you will begin learning the technical skills for data analyst career paths.

You will develop your competencies in high-demand analysis tools and building communication, teamwork and problem-solving skills. 

Begin your journey towards a career as a Data Analyst. 
 

Software Developer

The Department of Skills, Education and Employment’s Seek there are currently thousands of jobs in Australia that require software development skills.

Get an introduction to the programming skills needed for a career as a software developer. This learning path provides a broad perspective on core technologies for web development, software development, and databases. 

You will be able to practice with popular technologies like HTML and CSS and explore core languages like Python, JavaScript and Java.

The software developer learning pathway will take around 30 hours to complete. 
 

It Administrator + It Support Desk Technician

If you’ve worked in an office environment, it’s almost guaranteed that you will have turned to an IT administrator or technician at some point.

Seek there are currently over 20,000 jobs available in Australia requiring IT support skills.

If solving IT pain points appeals to you, perhaps consider reskilling into this sought-after profession. 
The CompTIA Network+ certification is what you’ll need. It measures a network administrator's basic understanding of networking components and concepts. 

LinkedIn Learning has two courses to consider: 

IT Administration

These Total Seminars courses cover the topics tested on the CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) certification exam.

For information on additional study resources—including practice tests, lab simulations, books, and discounted exam vouchers—visit totalsem.com/linkedin. LinkedIn

Learning members receive special pricing.

Students will learn essential networking concepts, master techniques to manage and administer a network infrastructure and prepare for the CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) exam.

Prepare for a career in IT administration over around 23 hours. 

IT Support Desk Technician

Providing an opportunity for existing IT administrators to upskill, this learning path provides IT system administrators with a comprehensive method for studying the skills tested in the CompTIA A+ (220-1001 and 220-1002) exams. 

It includes in-depth courses teaching skills from each exam domain and provides insights into resources you can use to prepare for the exam.

These Total Seminars courses cover the topics tested on the CompTIA A+ certification exams. For information on additional study resources—including practice tests, lab simulations, books, and discounted exam vouchers—visit totalsem.com/linkedin. LinkedIn Learning members receive special pricing.

Students will discover how to install and maintain devices and software, learn about virtualization, desktop imaging, and deployment and prepare for the CompTIA A+ exam.

This course will take around 34 hours to complete.

What’s next?

After completing the role-based skills on LinkedIn Learning, students can go deeper on technical skills for some roles with further education at a university, TAFE or industry-specific college. 

Microsoft Learn Certifications may also be helpful for some. A range of these certifications have been reduced to $15USD for those who have been unemployed or furloughed due to COVID-19. 

The offer is only open to those who schedule an exam before 31 December 2020 and complete the exam by 31 March 2021. 

Find out more about discounted Microsoft certifications.