Just one quarter of employees believe their employer is preparing them for a more data-oriented and automated workplace (25 per cent), according to new research from data analytics company Qlik. This is despite most business leaders predicting an upheaval in working practices due to the rapid onset of artificial intelligence (AI).
With 32 per cent of employees surveyed reporting they had changed jobs in the last 12 months because their employer wasn’t offering enough upskilling and training opportunities, the research has shown the need to better upskill workforces to support the workplace transition that is already underway.
The report, Data Literacy: The Upskilling Evolution, was developed by Qlik in partnership with The Future Labs and combines insights from expert interviews with surveys from over 1,200 global C-level executives and 6,000 employees. The findings, which were largely consistent across all geographies surveyed, reveal how the rapid growth in data usage is extending enterprise aspirations for its potential and, in turn, transforming working practices. As organisations shift from passive data consumption toward a state of Active Intelligence™, where continuous data becomes integrated into working practices to trigger immediate actions, the report predicts how this will impact skills requirements and professional opportunities.
The study found that business leaders and employees alike predict that data literacy – defined as the ability to read, work with, analyse and communicate with data – will be the most in-demand skill by 2030. And 81 per cent of executives believe it will become as vital in the future as the ability to use a computer is today.
This reflects the greater appreciation of data in the enterprise. Global employees surveyed report their use of data and its importance in decision-making has doubled over the past year. While 86 per cent of executives now expect all team members to be able to explain how data has informed their decisions.
“We often hear people talk about how employees need to understand how Artificial Intelligence will change how they complete their role, but more importantly we need to be helping them develop the skills that enable them to add value to the output of these intelligent algorithms,” said Elif Tutuk, VP of innovation & design at Qlik. “Data literacy will be critical in extending workplace collaboration beyond human-to-human engagements, to employees augmenting machine intelligence with creativity and critical thinking.”
“Over the past few years, investments in digitizing most business processes have transformed the data resources available, and this will continue as we move toward a more intelligent and automated workplace,” said Dr. Paul Barth, global head of data literacy at Qlik. “But investment in leading-edge data platforms has revealed a large – and expanding – gap in data literacy skills in the workforce. To become a data-driven company, where employees regularly use data and analytics to make better decisions and take informed actions, business leaders need to make investments in upskilling workers in every role to close the data literacy gap.”
