Programming, digital competencies, foreign languages, a driver's license and self-organization - these are skills that can be acquired in just a few months and will definitely boost your professional competencies. Start learning today, and in 2018 you can count on a promotion at work.

Advice for those who would like to earn more, get a raise or simply become more competitive on the job market - it's time to acquire new skills. Before the end of the year, it's a good idea to consider additional training so that within a few months you can gain new knowledge and more arguments in negotiations about a raise. You can also take the initiative yourself - suggest to your employer that you would like to take part in training. Here are 6 skills that will take no more than 6 months to acquire and that will bring new value to the company Programming

The division between humanities graduates and engineers stopped being relevant long ago. Programming skills are now number one among additional competencies. They will be especially useful for non-technical people, but they will also significantly boost engineers' competence. However, programming is a very broad concept, so which specific technologies should you learn to be competitive on the job market? - Currently, the most popular language is Java, but JavaScript and related technologies, both front-end and back-end, are also valued on the job market. It takes 6 months for students of IT bootcamps to become specialists in these fields. After that time, they acquire knowledge that allows them to apply for a job or a promotion in the IT industry - comments Marcin Kosedowski from the online programming school Kodilla.com.

Employees' technological awareness is now an essential element for the functioning of a modern company. That is why the ability to program is and will continue to be highly valued by employers from various industries.

Digital competencies

It seems that nowadays almost everyone can use a computer and mobile devices. However, employees' digital competencies leave much to be desired, so familiarity with them can be an advantage. When hiring a new employee with digital skills, the employer can be sure that this person will not waste time exploring the basic functions of software or manually performing time-consuming operations that can be done with a few mouse clicks.

More and more often, employees realize the potential that lies in knowing new technologies and want to use that potential. Older generations of employees in particular strive to develop their competencies, including technical ones. This is confirmed by VMware research: 39% of respondents in the 45-54 age group actively seek opportunities to get advice or take training in designing and creating mobile applications, and almost one third (31%) of people in the 55+ group take the same actions also in the area of programming and creating online content. Therefore, if your digital skills end at basic use of a computer and the MS Office suite, this is the last call to improve your competencies and not be left behind. Start by learning to use office tools, email or instant messaging apps, and develop your skills in network security and programming. The European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL) is also useful.

Foreign languages

English dominates as the foreign language taught in public and private schools, but according to the Ranstadt Research Institute, only 17% of Poles declare a good or fluent command of English. Other foreign languages are also valued on the job market, but their command is also insufficient.

German, like Russian, is known well by one in twenty Poles, while French, Spanish and Italian by only a few percent. The nationwide Salary Survey (OBW) confirms a trend known for years - people who speak at least one foreign language well are more attractive on the job market and earn more. A foreign language is especially useful in large companies - international corporations, regardless of the position.

Knowledge of niche languages is very valuable to employers. The dominant trends include: Chinese, Arabic, Hungarian and Swedish. Due to the fact that there are few specialists in our country who speak these languages, learning them can open up many opportunities, especially since learning in an intensive course can take just a few months.

Driver's license

In Poland, 80% of men and 51% of women hold a category B driver's license. In 2016, the requirement to have this document appeared in 15% of job offers. According to an Adzuna report, the professional areas where drivers will find the most job offers are: Logistics and Warehousing (27%), Construction (23%), Engineering (22%). Gdańsk, Poznań and Wrocław were among the cities with the highest number of vacancies for holders of this document. In Logistics, an additional driver's license category is also useful, e.g. C, C+E or D. A category B driver's license is an asset for salespeople, insurers or suppliers.

Self-organization

Managing yourself in time, that is, the ability to plan well, anticipate, assess situations, multitask, as well as the ability to assess your own capabilities and cope with stress. It sounds trivial, but it is one of the most important traits listed by 50% of employers looking for employees in a study by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development. Good organization is a skill required regardless of profession. Training in self-organization, time management or effective learning can be a solution.

Among specialists, e.g. programmers, the ability to determine how long a given task will take is often just as important as completing it. Without this, management staff may not be able to arrange an action plan for the entire team, and projects may be significantly delayed.

Ability to change careers

It sometimes happens that a promotion is almost impossible in your current position. You can then consider changing careers within the company or completely changing industries. The most promising professions of 2017 according to Hays include: programmer, IT specialist in the area of security, engineer (quality, process), specialist with knowledge of foreign languages, project manager, financial controller. - Age and profession do not matter much when changing careers. For example, among graduates of IT training there are older people, humanities graduates, teachers, marketers, warehouse workers or office workers. In addition, employers are increasingly willing to invest in proven people, offering them funding or paying for programming training in order to gain employees with new competencies - comments Marcin Kosedowski. Changing careers works in the case of the risk of liquidation of your current position, rapid company development, but also professional burnout.

A promotion means higher pay, but salary depends not only on experience or skills, but to a large extent on the industry or specialization. In order to increase income, you can change specialization or even change careers. People who have done so are valued by employers for their determination and motivation to learn. You can become a Java programmer after a 6-month online course. This can be a new stage in life, but you also have to remember that it means learning many new things, and a higher salary may appear over time.

 

Source: Kodilla.com