The labour market is constantly evolving and in recent years, thanks to the development of the digital economy and contexts linked to the growth of the web, many new digital professions have emerged. These digital works then experienced an unparalleled increase in demand following the pandemic, thanks to the profound technological transformation that companies have undergone.

In 2022 it is now essential to possess digital-oriented skills, but we must be very careful because, with digital professions, we refer to a whole range of possibilities that we need to know with knowledge in order to be ready for calls from companies or to embark on a freelance path. What we will see in this article are the digital professions of 2022 and those that will condition the market in the future,

Working in the digital world: between pandemic and digital transformation

The last few years have seen the birth of numerous new digital professions, the so-called “jobs of the future”, made necessary by the transformation of the labour market due to technological innovations and innovations, but also to the change in our habits. The pandemic has accelerated a process that in our country seemed destined to accompany us for many more years. The lockdown and the reorganizations within companies to maintain production processes have upset the habits of workers and have also accompanied the new habits of consumers as a consequence.

The smart working obligation has helped to digitize work even in those contexts in which it seemed to be a mirage, and there are many commercial realities and small shops which, to cope with an economic situation that is anything but thriving, have invested in digital with the rise of many SMEs in the world of e-commerce.

Suffice it to say that in 2022 alone, the online shopping market in Italy will be worth 48.1 billion euros, with an increase of + 20% compared to 2021.

This situation has favoured the already strong habit of consumers to use digital platforms and investments for companies in new advertising, advertising.

We are getting used to flexibility in the workplace, with many professionals who have abandoned the classic concept of the office, in favour of completely smart or hybrid realities. Digital work from home is now a reality also rooted in Italy, with strong growth in freelance workers.

Digital jobs: why are they so successful?

Understanding why digital today is a rapidly growing sector is essential in order to be able to specialize and find the right job opportunities, whether it’s a company looking for staff or professionals looking for work.

As far as companies are concerned, there are many reasons :

• Facing new needs, as we have seen from the data, in fact, the economic induced is relevant;
• Remain competitive ;
• Take advantage of the many opportunities the web offers, thanks also to the new digital works that are gradually emerging.

For workers, on the other hand, being a digital professional means:

• Flexibility and working from anywhere in the world, even in corporate contexts. What today is defined as digital nomadism, which is increasingly asserting itself;
• Being able to emerge even as a freelancer, in fact, many realities seek consultancy or professionals with this type of collaboration;
• It is a market that is still growing, and therefore many possibilities are available.

However, this last point leads to a very important reflection. If it is evident that the demand from companies is high, the offer cannot always satisfy the demand, creating not indifferent gaps.

The digital professions most in demand by companies

One important thing to underline: when we talk about the web and digital today, and also about the highest-paid digital jobs, it is good to make some considerations.

For companies, investing in new technologies in 2022 should no longer be a simple alternative but a real prerogative. Essential for business developments. It is exactly in this need that the digital works of the future fit. Here are the professions of the digital economy that, according to forecasts, will be the most in-demand by companies:

• SEO Specialist
• Data scientist
• Social Media Manager
• E-commerce Specialist
• UX Designers
• Cyber ​​Security Specialist
• Web Designer and Web Developer

Let’s see them in detail.

SEO specialist

First on this list is the SEO Specialist. SEO is search engine optimization, optimization for search engines.

So what does the SEO Specialist do? The SEO Specialist is the professional who takes care of making our site, which is the institutional web profile par excellence, perform on the main search engines. Especially Google.

It is that increasingly requested figure who, through technical work on the site and perhaps through content marketing strategies (for example, we have seen the importance of SEO in content marketing ) with attention to the blog, will try to make you climb the searches on Google.

Data scientist

The great strength of the web is the possibility of being able to trace practically every movement. This tracking obviously produces data, and if these data are properly analysed, they become an important tool for companies to optimize processes and tell their stories.

It is exactly in this last phase that a data scientist enters. A professional figure among the most important and one of the highest paid among digital workers because his work and his considerations directly affect the economic issues of the company (we spoke in the article on data storytelling about how important storytelling and data communication are).

Hiring one is important when you want to improve an existing digitization process.

Social Media Manager

Probably among all digital jobs, the most iconic of the digital transition and also among the most requested by companies, which cannot be missing from a self-respecting content marketing team. However, it is important to understand how being a social media manager today does not mean publishing posts on Instagram or Facebook.

A whole series of very important skills are required:

• Copywriting
• Basic graphics
• community management
• Google ADS

In addition to strong skills that lead to the skills of a strategist. The social media manager is the figure who gives a face and a voice to companies and includes various roles under his title, from the social content specialist to the community manager: he takes care of the content, writes copy, manages the UGC, and interacts with users. For this reason, it is certainly one of the works of the present and the future.

E-commerce specialist

If, as we have seen, the data for online sales show us a development of the sector that is impossible not to consider today when planning a business strategy, it is evident how extremely important it is to hire highly specialized professionals in this sector.

This is the case for the e-commerce specialist. A digital work that is not limited to the simple technical construction of e-commerce, but that guides companies towards strategic and content choices, to optimize the showcase and make the end-user experience on the site equal if not better than that in the physical store. It is no coincidence that there is a real branch of marketing dedicated to taking care of the content of e-shops, content marketing for e-commerce.

UX Designers

We talked a little while ago about the user experience, and it is precisely in this branch of competence that the UX Designer is placed.

Among the best paid digital jobs, because, under his supervision, all the steps of the user are outlined in the phases of discovery and then purchase of the product.

The UX Designer designs a functional funnel, knows the customer journey and intercepts the customer’s needs, even before they have expressed them. A job of the highest responsibility because it directly affects sales.

Cyber ​​Security Specialist

If you have already entered the digital world, you will surely have come across one of the most controversial aspects of this world. Disentangling between policies, data, and the security of the latter can be complicated.

This is where the Cyber ​​Security Specialist comes into play. This professional figure operates mainly on two fronts:

• Protect internal company data;
• Protect external data provided by users to the company.

As we have seen with the data specialist, data is a real asset to be protected and preserved, and it, therefore, becomes essential to do it in the best possible way in digital contexts where everything is subject to a machine.

Web Designer and Web Developer

Last but not least, Web Designers and Web Developers are among the most important digital jobs in 2022. We mentioned the institutional site is perhaps the most important showcase of our business on the web, so it becomes essential to have developers in your team capable of making this tool performant and updating it in the wake of new technologies that year after year are renewed.

The importance of digital skills: how to acquire them

All the digital jobs we have talked about obviously require some fundamental digital skills. To acquire them, you can obviously rely on training courses, bearing in mind that only field experience can be the real test:

• Knowledge of social platforms;
• Mastery of the Office suite and its main programs (Word, PowerPoint, Excel);
• Willingness to work in a team, even remotely;
• Use of written and spoken English;
• problem-solving;
• Creativity aimed at the web.

How to insert digital skills in the CV

It is not enough to have acquired skills; you need to be able to communicate them in the best possible way, to those who will have to evaluate the CV during the hiring phase.

Demonstrating one’s skills is always a critical issue, and the mistake that is often made is to insert them vaguely in the curriculum, without a tangible reference. For this reason, the best way to incorporate digital skills into your CV is through examples.

If you are a Web Designer, an idea could be to create a CV, instead of a standard format, a real website that practically demonstrates what you are capable of doing, in which you can also insert your portfolio.

What if I have no experience?

Remembering that if you apply for a Junior position, the person making the selection is well aware of the fact that you have no experience, to make your application better you could build your portfolio, with invented projects, which however are able to explain what you’re capable.

It’s definitely a great way to stand out, even if you don’t have a background in the industry.

The obstacles to the inclusion of digital professionals

It’s not all roses and flowers for those who do this type of digital work. If, on the one hand, in fact, many companies have accelerated the race in a farsighted way, it is also true that unfortunately we are often confronted with realities that are not ready for this step.

The upskilling and reskilling of already existing professionals are not simple, and it also becomes complex to integrate digital workers in already consolidated departments and sectors of companies.

It should also be said that the PNRR has included measures for the development and promotion of digital skills in this direction.

There are established training programs and access possibilities for companies that were not even imaginable a few years ago.

The closing advice remains that of continuing to train, always keeping an eye on market updates on the professions most required by companies.