According to research by professional services and training provider ComtelPro, nearly nine in 10 (89%) Singapore-based employees have indicated their interest for up-skilling in order to succeed.

Among those surveyed, 48% believe that there’s a need to adapt their current skills and experience in order to embrace the digital and technological changes that would be happening over the next 5 years.

The survey was commissioned to better understand how Singapore workers view their employment prospects in the digital age, and also the impact of digitalisation and new technologies in the workplace.

501 Singapore-based employees aged 23 to 55 were surveyed for the study, with males and females making up for equal proportions of the demographic.

Out of those surveyed, the largest group (14.3%) was from the manufacturing sector.

Cloud Tech, IoT, Big Data, Blockchain Are In Demand For Training

The technologies selected in the research included 3D Printing, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain, Big Data, Cloud Technology and Cybersecurity, among others.

When asked about what technologies their companies utilise, Mobile Internet, Cloud Technology, and Big Data emerged tops.

Q: Which of the following technologies does your company utilise?

Of the technologies, cloud technology also emerged as the most popular option in terms of training, with 80% expressing interest in getting more educated on it.

This was followed by Internet of Things (79%), Big Data (75%), AI (74%), Cybersecurity (72%), Blockchain (70%), and 3D printing (62%).

When this interest was compared to the training that employers were currently offering, Blockchain stood out as a new technology in which availability of training didn’t match the demand from Singapore employees.

Q: Which areas does your employer offer employee education programmes or training in?

Perhaps it’s because at the moment, there aren’t enough training programmes available out there for companies to sign their employees up for.

But with 65% of respondents believing that Blockchain could lead to job displacement within the next five years, perhaps employers and training centres should start looking at the technology more seriously from now on.

The research also helped identify the employee skills that respondents expect to be in demand within the next five years.

Data analytics (43%), the understanding of digital technology (42%), and digital communications (41%) were identified as skills expected to see a “significant increase” in demand.

What do you think about the results? Let us know!

Featured Image Credit: Edgar Su / Reuters