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84% of employers see coding as a key skill - report
Wed, 1st Jun 2022
FYI, this story is more than a year old

According to a new report by NTUC LearningHub, 84% of employers say the need for employees across various job roles and departments to have basic coding skills and knowledge is growing.

The report by NTUC LearningHub also intends to offer insights on the importance of acquiring coding knowledge, the demand for tech-lite and tech-heavy roles, as well as the priority skills required of employees.

It also finds that 31% of employers say over half the jobs in their organisation require basic and advanced coding skills.

The report is based on a survey of 200 business leaders across a range of industries in Singapore and interviews with industry practitioners and experts from NTUC LearningHub as well as its training content partners.

It also provides recommendations on how aspiring coders from various backgrounds and competency levels can upskill in coding to broaden their career opportunities.

The findings also reveal that many employers are optimistic about the growth of technology-related job roles in Singapore, with 53% saying that jobs requiring basic coding skills or tech-lite jobs are seeing an increase.

In addition, 41% of employers say that a growing number of jobs require advanced coding skills or tech-heavy jobs.

"With the power to help organisations operate more strategically and maximise their teams' potential, low code automation stands at the forefront of software development," UiPath South-East Asia vice president and managing director Wen-Ming Wong.

"Low code platforms are ushering in the future of work – one that's democratic, efficient, and automated.

"Adoption of low code tools increases business output and extends the practice of software development to less technically inclined individuals.

"Not only does it take the responsibility of developing lower-level applications from IT teams, but it also empowers employees who already desire the opportunity to work more with automation.

"The automated enterprise is an empowered one, and low code is the key to unlocking it."

NTUC LearningHub provides continuing education and training in Singapore and aims to transform the lifelong employability of working people.

Since its corporatisation in 2004, the company has been working with employers and individual learners to provide learning solutions in areas such as cloud, infocomm technology, healthcare, employability - literacy, business excellence, workplace safety - health, security, human resources and foreign worker training.

"In today's highly digitalised world, the ability to code is a critical skill even for non-tech employees as it will enable them to create value for their organisations," NTUC LearningHub infocomm technology director Anthony Chew says.

"As companies increasingly adopt the use of low-code platforms, it is now possible for business users to develop applications, carry out data analysis, create machine learning models, and automate tasks.

"This results in employers looking for individuals with coding skills to utilise this technology.

"Additionally, by learning how to code, employees are able to communicate more effectively with technical teams and gain a greater understanding of technology, which increases efficiency for companies when it comes to implementing digitalisation initiatives."