Content creators, social media, marketing jobs to grow in 2021: LinkedIn

Freelance content creators, marketing, social media and digital marketing, cybersecurity and specialised engineering roles will present better job opportunities and emerge as the top five job categories in 2021, according to LinkedIn.

LinkedIn’s 'Jobs on the rise’ list includes 15 fast growing jobs, and aims to help professionals, especially those who may have lost their jobs during the pandemic, know about the employment landscape. These categories have seen the highest year-on-year growth rates in hiring, based on LinkedIn data between April and October.

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Top of the list are content creators, who use creative storytelling skills to produce entertaining content such as podcasts, Youtubers, bloggers and content coordinators are expected to grow. With India expected to have over 760 million smartphone users in 2021, demand for local and relevant content is only going to grow in 2021.

YouTube is the country’s most popular digital platform with an 82% penetration rate. India also has a burgeoning podcast scene and is currently the third-largest podcast-listening market, according to a report by KPMG. As new ways to monetise this content emerges, demand for those who can produce captivating stories will only grow.

“Digital transformation has continued to drive all industries, and both, tech and non-tech roles have shifted to meet the needs of a new collaborative, remote work culture. The List shows us that audience builders and content creators are key to brands, HR continues to be at the heart of all operations, user and customer experience are critical in the new online world of service, and emerging tech, especially ed-tech, continues to boom,” said Ruchee Anand, Director - Talent & Learning Solutions, India at LinkedIn.

Social media and digital marketing roles are growing as brands need to connect with a rapidly growing market. This is fuelling demand for experts who know how to craft the perfect message to engage customers and drive demand across different social and digital channels.

Cybersecurity and data science roles will continue to rise as data safety becomes a key priority for consumers and organisations alike. Startups, including Zoomcar and Unacademy, saw user data leaked onto the dark web last year, while a data breach at BigBasket hit the privacy of 20 million users. Experts say as remote work becomes more widely accepted now, investment in cybersecurity solutions by organisations is set to pick up.

As EdTech, HealthTech, and FinTech sectors continue to experience a significant digital overhaul, professionals who can pivot to digital-based operations smoothly will be particularly sought after. Finance, education, healthcare, and e-commerce roles are also expected to gain popularity in the job market.

With remote working becoming mainstream, HR professionals face new challenges of employee engagement, upskilling and recruitment. This has raised the demand for skilled HR executives who can onboard new employees remotely as well as develop existing talent.

According to the data, the covid-19 disruption has fuelled demand for customer services roles as brands navigate customer concerns and adapt to how they deliver their services online. User experience designer roles and customer service roles will be critical in helping organizations forge stronger and enduring relationships with customers in this turbulent scenario.