New occupations in the digital world: Sexy jobs in the 21st Century
They have titles like chief digital officer, chief marketing technologist or big data scientist, and they are digital professionals who know how to reach customers through social networks or how to generate new digital business using huge quantities of data. Below, you’ll find an overview of the new positions that employers are urgently seeking to fill in the digital working world.
There is huge demand for digital professionals in the new world of work. And there are reasons for that: Capgemini Consulting surveyed 130 top managers around the world, and 90 percent of them admitted that there was a deficit in digital expertise at their companies. At the same time, 87 percent of those surveyed acknowledged that the changes brought about by digital technology would create competitive advantages for their companies. So what were they to do? First and foremost, they went about hiring experts who are familiar with the digital world. The spread of digital technology has therefore led to a heavenly job market for those with digital skills. In the year 2012 alone, the process of digitalization resulted in 1.5 million new jobs in Germany, according to a study conducted by Bitkom, the trade association for digital technology. And the rate of job growth is increasing, because production, IT, customer service and the Internet are becoming ever more intertwined. This is leading to a growing supply of new jobs that the Harvard Business Review calls “the sexiest jobs of the 21st century.” Among them are the following:
- Chief Digital Officer
Economists who are keenly interested in technological innovations and improvements are being sought by companies for the position of chief digital officer. Chief digital officers set out the guidelines and parameters of digitalization, as it were. They develop new business models, introduce innovative technologies and promote a style of work in which employees are linked with digital technology. That means they must be curious, persuasive and willing to take risks. - Chief Marketing Officer
This role is not really new, but it’s becoming more and more digital. Managers serving in this capacity have experience in marketing and working with advertising agencies. These days, they act as strategists, technology experts and trainers, they are creative, and they carry broad responsibility for implementing the technological vision of the marketing department in the company as a whole. The chief marketing officer supports the external agencies and service providers and maintains contact with all the departments of the company so that the ideal technical prerequisites are established in all areas of the company for a new digital marketing strategy. - Big Data Scientist
The big data scientist has a degree in computer science. Persons in this role gather all the data held by the departments of the company and then evaluate it. To do so, they use a variety of analytical tools and then program various queries. Depending on the size of the company, they are responsible for not just evaluating the data but also using the new information to develop ideas for new business models and strategies. Big data scientists need great communication skills, because they have to present and lobby for their approaches and ideas throughout the entire company. - Data Strategist
Data strategists have an academic background in mathematics, physics or computer science. They lay down the guidelines for handling data. In other words, they define which information may be used without hesitation and where there are legal concerns with the analysis and evaluation of data. For this, data strategists need an advanced understanding of technical issues. - E-Commerce Manager
As graduates in business management, e-commerce managers organize the range of products sold in an online shop. They determine what competitors are offering and adjust the content of their own shop accordingly. They also make sure that the online shop has a user-friendly design. - SEO Manager
SEO managers typically have experience in marketing as well as a background in editing or economics. They are responsible for optimizing the content of web sites so that they can be found as easily as possible by search engines. In addition to a feel for marketing strategies, SEO managers should have a good affinity for technical issues, because they have to understand how search engines work. - Social Media Manager
Social media managers don’t necessarily have a technical or business background. Their role is to look after the Internet community of the company and supply it with new content on a regular basis. They know what information works on which channels. To learn this, they routinely evaluate statistics, based on which they then adapt the content strategy to the individual social media channels.
Author: Editorial team Future. Customer.
Image: lassedesignen – Fotolia/Adobe Stock
