New research has revealed the ten digital and IT jobs that are set to become the most crucial over the next two to three years, with competition to attract the best talent for these positions predicted to become increasingly fierce.

The professional networking platform LinkedIn and CapGemini, the business consulting and professional services organisation, teamed up to investigate the digital skills gap. Along the way, the research also produced a list of the top 10 IT, tech and digital roles that are set to be most sought-after in the very near future. The list included:

Information security/privacy consultant
Chief digital officer/chief digital information officer
Data architect
Digital project manager
Data engineer
Chief customer officer
Personal web manager
Chief internet of things officer
Data scientist
Chief analytics officer/chief data officer

A separate study conducted among digital business leaders in the US also named the top digital skills employers are looking for. Researchers asked around 3,000 hiring managers and CIOs what skills they love to see on a CV. They named: UX Design, Web Development, Data Analysis, Growth Engineering, Social Media Marketing and Management, and Content Creation and Marketing.

The GDPR effect

It will come as no surprise to some that information security consultants come in at the very top of this list, as 2018 is the year when new data protection regulations come into force. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is an in-depth update to data protection regulations in the UK and will affect all businesses, charities, start-ups and both public and private sector organisations.

One of the key changes is to make it mandatory for organisations of certain types to appoint a Data Protection Officer, but larger businesses – particularly data processors and controllers – will need an in-house consultant to oversee all aspects of GDPR compliance. The penalties for GDPR non-compliance are set to be severe and expensive, with fines of up to €20M or up to 4% of total global revenue for infringing parts of the legislation.

Is the talent gap increasing?

The LinkedIn and CapGemini research also found that although the UK has the largest supply of digital talent after India, around 57% of business leaders also say that they are suffering from a skills shortage and that this widening skills gap is bad for business. Commenting on these findings, Capgemini’s Head of Executive Leadership and Change, Claudia Crummenerl, explained:

“Organisations face a mammoth task in terms of digital upskilling. Given that skill redundancy is a key concern among our employee respondents, ensuring a clear development path is essential to address this,”

“In the future, the digital talent gap will continue to widen, and no company can sit back and be comfortable. Organisations need to be consistently innovating and planning their workforce evolution.”