Genx bets on work experience, millennials focus on upskilling: Linkedin

The world’s largest online professional network Linkedin says professionals in India are confident about career progress despite growing uncertainties about the job market and financial future in the current environment.

Nearly 80 per cent professionals are confident about skilling opportunities, while 79 per cent are confident about the strength of their curriculum vitaes, according to its workforce confidence index, which was based on survey responses from 1,752 professionals during January 1 to 29.

However, the index shows a dip in India’s overall confidence as the composite score dropped from 58 in December 2020 to 54 in January 2021.

The survey attributes dip in optimism to the workforce’s growing concerns about the status of Covid-19 pandemic, surmounting expenses and job availability in the present economic climate.

This professional uncertainty comes right after the year-end holiday season when India’s hiring rate dropped to 17 per cent year-over-year in December 2020, according to Linkedin’s labour market update.

While the job market looks bleak, entrepreneurship looked up for Indian professionals last year. The labour market update highlights the rise of entrepreneurship in India as findings show a 10 per cent growth in members with the title ‘founders’ or ‘cofounder on their profiles from January to December 2020 on Linkedin.

This uptick in new entrepreneurs was particularly strong in the fields of mental healthcare, e-learning and online media.

“Skills are expected to become the new professional ‘currency’ this year as workers from different generations rely on learning new skills to futureproof their careers at a time when industries continue to strengthen their remote operations,” said Ashutosh Gupta, India Country Manager at Linkedin.

Employees from traditional sectors like corporate services, healthcare and IT software industries are found to be most confident about the future of their employers as companies continue to adopt newer technologies and revamp their talent strategies.

“Reimagining employee skills and roles to welcome the post-pandemic ways of working will be crucial to building resilience for companies across sectors,” he said.

The workforce confidence index shows that while India remains resilient, professionals from different generations have contrasting reasons to stay confident in these testing times. While 92 per cent of Gen X (born between 1965 and 1980) and 98 per cent of Baby Boomers (between 1946 and 1964) say the strength of their work experience and academic qualifications make them more confident, 86 per cent of Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) state they are more inspired by opportunities to grow their skills and climb the ladder.

Besides, 80 per cent of Gen Z professionals (born after 1997) say the likelihood of progressing their careers makes them more confident today.