Digital Skills, a ‘golden’ Opportunity for Mexican Talent

The acceleration of digital transformation and the growth of the economy are demanding that students, universities, and companies bet on the development and mastery of digital skills in an increasingly competitive work environment.

Technology hiring is huge, and it continues to grow. Web development, data analytics, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, blockchain and advanced programming are driving this tech revolution. Employment in the IT sector is also strong. According to the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), in the second quarter of 2022 in Mexico there were 1,556,105 people trained in computer science and information and communication technology, of which only 76 percent work as professionals in the tech industry.

This has had an impact on the way people learn and educate themselves. Globally, digital resources, such as tutorials, blogs or digital certifications, are more popular for students than traditional formats. Completion rates for programming-related courses that include online formats are 20 percent higher than those with offline programming assignments, which speaks to the importance of maintaining online platforms for this type of learning. In addition, accrediting an online course or certification increases the knowledge and skills of students and professionals to perform as traffic manager, data scientist, software developer or cloud engineer in a relatively short time, improving their professional career and opportunities.

It is worth noting that student interest in digital skills is increasingly greater than business or humanities-related skills. According to Coursera data, in 2022, the mastery of technological skills among Mexican students reached 52 percent, a significant increase from the 10 percent registered the previous year. Cloud computing, web development and computer networks were the skills with the highest proficiency in the field of technology among students in Mexico.

Remote work has caused organizations to adapt to the digital environment through new methodologies that promote the welfare of their employees and improve productivity, so more and more companies are demanding the mastery and knowledge of digital skills.  

In the specific case of the IT industry, some companies have implemented recurrent training for their work teams to update their tools and skills, providing a competitive advantage for the company and boosting the motivation and performance of its employees. One good example is Turing, an AI powered platform that not only provides matches between developers and companies that need their talent, but also offers support to programmers to continue their technical and professional development.

To better understand the programming languages and tech skills that companies need and represent an opportunity for high skilled developers, Turing has examined the need for various software talents among its clients, which include big corporations and fast-growing startups, and discovered some intriguing trends about IT hiring in 2022, including skills for back-end development, front-end and database expertise, without ignoring soft skills: leadership, emotional intelligence, teamwork and interpersonal communication.

Automation and e-commerce are other variables that have made IT talent one of the most demanded in the labor market in countries such as Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia. Additionally, compared to other sectors, the IT industry is one of the few in which there are specialized talent recruitment platforms, which boosts the employability of new IT talent both locally and globally.

In the same vein, the future of numerous industries will be supported by careers related to blockchain, cybersecurity, cloud engineering, software development, UX/UI design, analytics, and data science, among many other cases, so professionals in these careers have a very long-term field of work. Also, if they learn continuously to acquire technical and human skills, they will have the opportunity to access global job offers where they will be able to find better positions with high salaries, compared to almost any other profession.  

It is also important to emphasize that it is never too late to start a career in programming. Currently, people from all over the world who were engaged in other jobs that suffered a decrease in demand have found a great opportunity in programming to maintain a balance in the quality of life while generating competitive income. The large companies that are designing the future of our society, especially in Silicon Valley, are looking for professionals with these skills and Latin America can be the perfect ally to nurture and motivate this talent.

The digital revolution has impacted the demand for new talent, as well as the interest of students and employees to acquire digital skills that allow them to access digital jobs, with better compensation. While this represents a great challenge, it is also a golden opportunity for companies, universities, and digital enterprises to boost the employability of Mexican IT talent around the world.

Today, we see how traditional university plans and the way students and employees learn are changing due to the demand for competitive skills and the immediacy of learning demanded by today's job market. Therefore, we can expect that both universities and companies will continue to integrate courses and certifications from digital education platforms (edtechs) into their training programs to accelerate the training of human talent in the skills of the future.

I would like to know what you think of the article. I will always be open to receiving comments on my social networks or my email, jose.lujan@turing.com and twitter: @josedlujan.

Failure is just the name of the best teacher we can have.