The Skills Algorithm:

Executive Summary

July 2, 2024 Update: This work was updated on July 2nd to correct a data issue in one subsection of the report. Please see here for a summary of changes.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of digital skills and platforms enabled a major shift towards remote work. This rapid change required many industries and workers to adapt to new technological tools and concepts even as digitization had been trending upward before the pandemic. How did workers and employers adapt to shifts in demand for digital skills? And what was the impact on the demand for non-digital skills, such as leadership and problem-solving, across Canada’s labour market? 

Using data from nine million job postings collected, Canada-wide, from January 2020 to June 2023, this report looks at the evolution of skills during the pandemic, including the emergence of new digital skills trends, and the interaction of different types of skills, and compares these findings with the findings in our previous report, I, Human (2019).1

In 2023, a total of 4,964 unique skills appeared across the job postings that were examined, with 2,198 (44 percent) identified as digital skills. A community clustering algorithm was used to organize these skills into six overall clusters (High-tech, Business and management, General office, Communication and interaction, Trades, and Sales and merchandising), based on their co-occurrence with other skills in job postings. Each of the six clusters contained both digital and non-digital skills. 

Looking specifically at digital skills, five sub-clusters emerged—three of which were present in the 2019 analysis—summarized in order of digital intensity: 

1. Software/Product Development and Data skills (e.g., SQL, Java, Python and C++) 
2. Cybersecurity and System Infrastructure skills (e.g., managing security systems) 
3. Industrial Modelling and Geospatial Software skills (e.g., computer-aided 3D design tools) 
4. Design and Marketing skills (e.g., Adobe Photoshop, Google Analytics) 
5. Workforce digital skills (e.g., Microsoft Office Suite software; enterprise resource planning tools such as SAP and Oracle)

Literature Review

To contextualize the analysis in the report, this section reviews how digital skills are defined, labour market trends for digital skills demand, and relevant government policy and industry initiatives to upskill and prepare workers for the changing skills landscape. We then focus specifically on the evolution of digital skills, and in particular, how the pandemic might have impacted the need for workers to be well-versed in digital technology.

What is a digital skill?

There is a consensus within existing literature that variations exist within digital skills. Work by Huynh and Malli4 conceptualized digital literacy and skills as a three-layered model:

1. widely applicable baseline digital skills
2. workforce digital skills for specific occupations
3. professional digital skills used in developing digital technologies, products, and services

This layered understanding of digital literacy is shared across jurisdictions. In Canada, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) does not reference the three layers of digital skills specifically, but adapts from O*NET, a US skills taxonomy, in identifying them under “technical” or “analytical” skills categories. The National Skills Commission in Australia does separate skills into buckets (based on digital intensity): baseline digital skills, specific digital skills, and cutting-edge skills.5 Others do so using different terminologies. For example, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) distinguishes between three levels of digital skills as basic (foundational skills such as using a keyboard and sending emails), intermediate (using technologies to create content or evaluate technology), and advanced (using these skills for jobs in the IT sector or for tasks such as data analysis).

A study by the UK government and consultancy Ecorys organizes digital skills by their application, categorizing digital skills as belonging to one of three groups: basic digital literacy skill for everyday use (applicable for all people whether they are working or not), a digital skill for the general workforce (a minimum requirement of digital literacy for workers across all sectors to process information), or a digital skill for ICT professions (linked to the development of new digital technologies, and new products and services).6 Another study by the Brookfield Institute, called Who are Canada’s Tech Workers? adapted O*NET to the Canadian context to quantify the digital intensity of occupations. These skills, knowledge, and work activities include interaction with computers, computers and electronics programming, and telecommunications.7

Recap of I, Human (2019)

In the Brookfield Institute’s 2019 report I, Human,8 a rich taxonomy of skills was derived from job postings data, where digital skills were defined as a combination of skills that showed up consistently and uniquely in highly digital occupations, and skills which were defined as software skills. Next, a network analysis defined four digital clusters that tended to appear together. In order of digital intensity, the four clusters developed were Software and Product Development, System Infrastructure, Data Infrastructure, and Workforce Digital Skills. Workforce Digital Skills are the least digitally intensive, but are found to be the most prevalent across the labour market, with almost a third of Canadian job postings requiring them. This includes skills such as Microsoft Office Suite, enterprise resource planning, and project management software.9 Other digital skills clusters such as System Infrastructure Skills and Software/Product Development Skills are higher in digital intensity, whereas the Data Skills cluster had a clear sub-cluster structure that had connections to the other three clusters, as a bridge between skills with relatively lower and higher digital intensity.

Broad digital skills trends in the labour market

Pandemic-accelerated digitization

As the COVID-19 pandemic began, operational disruptions were felt by organizations across industries, as workers adjusted to work-from-home settings and explored virtual work options. Many occupations that could be conducted virtually leveraged digital technologies to operate during the pandemic. As a result, video conferencing platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams experienced a significant surge in adoption, with Teams’ daily active users growing from 20 million in 2019 to 270 million in 2022.10 Other frequently used tools included remote desktop software (e.g., Chrome Remote and Apple Remote Desktop), business messaging apps such as Slack, and project management platforms such as Monday.com.

The implementation of remote work settings varied across sectors and occupations. In the health care sector for example, telehealth was widely adopted. This involved the use of digital information and communication technologies such as live video conferencing and messaging software and electronic health records (EHR) software to access health care services remotely and manage medical records. The use of telehealth came with skills-gap-related challenges, as telehealth diagnostics require both the practitioner and the patient to learn new technologies. A study found that the implementation of EHR enabled rapid deployment of standardized processes, which proved crucial in supporting clinical needs during the pandemic.11

Transitioning into the post-pandemic era, the option of remote work has remained for some employers, while others have transitioned to hybrid arrangements requiring employees to work in-person a few days a week or mandating full-time return to the office.12 13 In 2022, the degree of remote work in Canada varies across industries. Whereas the majority of workers in the Professional services or Information industries are able to work remotely (hybrid or full-time), it is estimated that 36% of workers across all industries have the ability to work remotely (full-time or hybrid).14 As a result, companies increased accommodations for remote work where employees can take advantage of a digital workspace that allows them to generate ideas and collaborate with team members.

As the COVID-19 pandemic began, operational disruptions were felt by organizations across industries, as workers adjusted to work-from-home settings and explored virtual work options.

Growing demand for digital skills 

Various international studies forecast growing demand for certain types of highly technical digital jobs. For instance, the World Economic Forum predicts big data analytics, environmental management technologies (as a response to climate change), and encryption and cybersecurity to have the greatest impact on job growth in the next five years.15 In particular, specialized roles in artificial intelligence (AI) and big data, such as data analysts, scientists, and engineers, and business intelligence analysts are estimated to grow by 30 to 35 percent in the next five years. Their survey of global businesses on the top reskilling focus areas from 2023 to 2027 found the top technology skills identified as AI and big data, Technological literacy, and Design and user experience. Coupled with top cognitive skills such as analytical and creative thinking, these skills are crucial for advanced technology roles that are projected to grow within the next five years.16

At the same time, employers perceive that digital skills requirements for the average worker are evolving. Through a series of skills surveys produced by the Business Council of Canada (BCC),17 employers reported on what they believed the most in-demand skills would be in the next three years. In 2016, employers believed the most in-demand skills included skilled trades, leadership, management, and information technology. In comparison, employers’ responses shifted significantly between the 2020 and 2022 surveys, with employers citing analytics, statistics, quantitative analysis, cognitive computing (including artificial intelligence and machine learning), computer science (including programming and software development), and cybersecurity as the most in-demand skills. Furthermore, a higher percentage of employers surveyed reported that post-secondary graduates did not possess the numeracy and technical skills that they need.

Hybrid and transversal skills

Other Canadian studies have examined the demand for hybrid skills, which include non-digital and soft skills such as communication, organizational, interpersonal, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills that complement technical skills.18 Since the pandemic, the rapid development of new workplace technologies, combined with pandemic-accelerated change, has further raised the importance for workers to develop the hybrid skills necessary to remain flexible and agile to adjust to changing workplaces and evolving technologies.19

Hybrid skills are often considered to be transversal, meaning skills that are not unique to a single industry or occupational context. This could include skills such as teamwork, communication, and problem solving. A study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) finds that transversal skills support worker resilience and job flexibility, acting as a buffer against shocks triggered by technological change, economic cycles, and unexpected events such as the pandemic.20 In addition, certain transversal skills have been associated with positive earnings and employment outcomes. A study of the United Kingdom’s online job vacancies data between 2015 and 2019 identifies the top 30 transversal skills, revealing a positive wage and employment return linked with skills such as project management, problem-solving, and people management.21

Specialized roles in artificial intelligence (AI) and big data, such as data analysts, scientists, and engineers, and business intelligence analysts are estimated to grow by 30 to 35 percent in the next five years.

Flexibility of digital skills

Digital skills play an important role across the labour market, even for occupations and sectors that are not inherently considered digitally-intensive. The Canadian Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) predicts that the number of tech workers outside the tech sector will surpass the number of workers within it.22

As digitization grows across the economy, digital skills have also been associated with positive wage and employment impacts. In one study, highly-used, lower-intensity office-based digital skills such as Oracle E-Business Suite applications and Microsoft tools are associated with around 10 percent increase in wages.23 Conversely, in more digitally-intensive work environments, information processing skills such as literacy, numeracy, and problem-solving skills have also been correlated with a lower likelihood of unemployment.24

Upskilling the workforce

Federal initiatives for upskilling

The federal government has made budget allocations toward skills development for workers. Notable skills development programs funded by the federal government include the Digital Skills for Youth program25 and the Skills and Partnership Fund, which specifically provides skills training for Indigenous peoples.26 27 Programs have focused on different sectors and demographics, including students and youth, newcomers, people with disabilities, Indigenous communities, foreign workers, and women.

Green digital skills are often required for activities such as tracking and optimizing energy and cooling systems, measuring impacts of green technologies, and identifying energy efficiencies within systems and infrastructure. The Government of Canada is planning to establish a Sustainable Jobs Partnership Council to identify skills demand and provide services to support upskilling. Furthermore, the creation of a Sustainable Jobs Training Centre through ESDC is part of a $250 million investment to help workers upgrade or gain new skills, with a specific focus on advancing the federal government’s net-zero goals.28

Private investment into upskilling

Businesses play a significant role in directly providing upskilling for workers. One initiative to support skills training is work-integrated learning (WIL), a form of experiential learning for students that combines academic studies with workplace experience by providing practical learning opportunities on the job while applying skills developed through their education. Other training options include microcredentials, digital training programs, and partnerships with post-secondary institutions.

However, there are barriers that keep employers from fully adopting upskilling programs. Among some of the barriers cited include a lack of data on what skills are in demand, costs of developing training programs, and difficulty finding appropriate partners to deliver the programs.

Digital skills play an important role across the labour market, even for occupations and sectors that are not inherently considered digitally-intensive.

Analysis of Skills Clusters

Using nine million job postings from Vicinity Jobs, the analysis revealed six distinct skills clusters across the 4,964 unique skills. Figure 3 shows these skills (digital and non-digital),37 revealing the range in digital intensity from least to most (left to right). Each dot represents one skill, with blue dots representing digital skills and yellow dots representing non-digital skills.38 The relative digital intensity of each cluster based on the digital intensity of skills (and jobs the skills appear in) was used to rank them accordingly. We included skills that are categorized as Technologies by Vicinity Jobs in our definition of digital skills, though that does not necessarily mean that all technologies have a high digital intensity. While most digital skills have a relatively higher digital-intensity score compared to the average skill, digital skills at the lower end of the spectrum in digital intensity tend to be less technical and are easier to learn. This includes hardware such as music-editing software, computer touch screens, digital scales, and barcode scanners.

The clusters identified include a mix of digital and non-digital skills. Some clusters have more digital skills than others, though the skills are less digitally intensive; conversely, other clusters have fewer digital skills that are more digitally intensive, as shown in Figure 4. Some specialized skills, such as medical skills, appeared throughout different clusters, instead of it appearing cogently in their own cluster. The six clusters, in order of highest to lowest digital intensity, are:

In addition to the six overall clusters identified, five digital sub-clusters were formed using digital skills that appeared across all clusters, as seen in Figure 5. In order of most to least digitally intensive, the five digital sub-clusters are:

1. Software/product development and data skills, which has a heavy concentration in the skills profiles of tech workers and industries (e.g., SQL, Apache, programming languages such as Java, Python, C++)
2. Cybersecurity and system infrastructure skills, which are used to manage security systems and maintain information technology systems (e.g., technical support, information systems)
3. Industrial modelling and geospatial software skills, which are focused on the visualization of 3D spaces (e.g., computer-aided design (CAD) and AutoCAD)
4. Design and marketing skills, which are commonly used by designers and marketing professionals (e.g., Adobe Photoshop, Google Analytics)
5. Workforce digital skills, which are lower-digital-intensity skills used by workers across many contexts, occupations and industries (e.g., Microsoft Office suite, email software, enterprise resource planning software such as SAP and Oracle).

Though these digital sub-clusters feature in the overall clusters, more analysis on these sub-clusters are presented in the analysis of digital skills sub-clusters section. 

Cluster 1: High-tech skills

This cluster is the most digitally intensive relative to the other skills clusters. Not only does it have the highest digital-intensity score, it contains the greatest number of digital skills (with over a thousand digital skills, comprising 87 percent of the cluster’s skills). We observe that this cluster primarily contains highly specialized digital skills used by high-tech workers for the creation of digital products and software, differentiated from the more general types of digital skills required of general office-based workers, as seen in Figure 6.

This cluster primarily contains highly specialized digital skills used by high-tech workers for the creation of digital products and software, differentiated from the more, general types of digital skills required of general office-based workers.

Programming languages such as Python and C++, as well as skills with cloud computing services such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure are used in a wide set of technological industries and occupations, including highly digital jobs such as data scientists and web developers. Common uses of these programming languages include web and internet development, IT infrastructure, quantum computing, software development, database administration, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. The knowledge of these programming language skills helps create digital products or software that are used across multiple industries. For instance, the finance industry has upscaled its business operations and has seen massive digital transformation in the past couple of years. It has increasingly adopted cloud-based solutions to store, process, and analyze large amounts of data and to improve scalability and reduce costs.39 Given industry-level data is available for job postings, there is potential for the analysis of the evolution of high-tech skills across industries, such as finance, to support program development or funding initiatives.

The inclusion of non-digital skills in this cluster alongside high digital intensity skills in this cluster reflect the occupational tasks of tech workers. For example, IT technicians may need skills in resolving technical problems arising in digital platforms and products, alongside knowledge of programming languages (e.g., Python and C++) in order to address any issues arising in the operability of products. Non-digital skills such as troubleshooting and quality assurance are technical forms of problem solving, often applied to repair the functions of products or digital processes on a machine or a system. Combinations of such skills could be in the profiles of software developers, quality assurance engineers, data scientists and machine learning engineers, employed across different industries and sectors.

Cluster 2: Business and Management skills 

This cluster contains general workforce skills, typically geared towards jobs which require education credentials at a bachelor’s degree or equivalent at minimum. With over half the skills classified as digital, it is the second-most digitally-intensive cluster. Key non-digital skills include transversal soft skills such as leadership, problem solving, analytical skills, and project management, which are among the most prevalent socio-emotional skills that are contained within this cluster. Digital skills in this cluster are moderately digitally intensive, and are generally in the Workforce Digital Skills sub-cluster, as seen in Figure 7. This includes analytics and enterprise resource planning software such as SAP and Oracle, as well as sales software in CRM and e-commerce platforms.

In the context of the pandemic, top skills in using online learning management tools such as Blackboard (including Blackboard Learn and Collaborate platforms to deliver and present content, this appears 2,236 times in job postings) and Moodle (appearing 4,129 times in job postings) were especially useful for teams in school, business and office settings. These tools often provided an alternative to in-person learning and collaboration during the pandemic, and have been used to supplement in-person activities during the recovery from the pandemic. Other tools like the enterprise resource planning (ERP) software and Salesforce software supported businesses during the pandemic, which led to a meteoric rise in e-commerce (that has since subsided).

In addition, there is a concentration of green skills, which could be leveraged for industries in environmental sustainability. This includes climate risk assessments, clean energy, environmental site assessments, and knowledge of renewable energies and a net-zero economy. This has links with tools and equipment that are relevant to a green transition, such as knowledge of electric vehicles, electrical microgrids, and meteorological equipment such as moisture analyzers and hygrometers. Jobs in the field of sustainable finance also rely on digital skills that support activities around the issuance of green bonds, impact investing, microfinance, and sustainable funds.

Some of the digital skills required in green occupations could include software such as ArcGIS (which supports mapping geographic information), programming languages such as Python and SQL, and computer-aided design (CAD) software. Examples of how digital skills could be leveraged include environmental engineers and scientists using CAD software to visualize environmental data, or by designers, architects, and engineers for site drawings, project plans, and equipment layouts to provide consultation on projects.40 In addition, the rising popularity of environmental intelligence41 will make use of software programs such as Envirosuite more commonplace, which uses monitoring systems and analytics to generate insights to pinpoint possible environmental disruptions through factors such as noise, water, air quality, odor, dust, and vibrations. Examples of entities that use this software could include airports, wastewater plants, landfills, construction sites, mining operations and cities.42

Cluster 3: General Office-based skills 

This cluster has a relatively high number of digital skills (76 percent of the skills in this cluster are digital), with Microsoft Suite tools (e.g., Office, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Access), data entry, administration, and reporting tools being the most common. The digital skills highlighted in this cluster have relatively lower digital intensity, and thus tend to be correlated to non-digital workers and occupations. As seen in Figure 8, this cluster is the only one to not have any software/product development or data digital skills, despite being the third-most digitally-intensive cluster. These are often basic digital skills required in corporate roles such as accountants, human resources professionals, and analysts, all of which require some element of in-office work with computers, including for organizing workflows, project management, and keeping track of business operations. While there are some skills in this cluster are more specific to certain fields, they generally have wider applicability across different occupational contexts, which makes these skills a good fit in this cluster (e.g., AutoCAD is typically used for design, but can be used by architects, designers, and civil engineers).

The digital skills highlighted in this cluster have relatively lower digital intensity, and thus tend to be correlated to non-digital workers and occupations.

More skills are transversal, applying across the General Office-based cluster and Communication and Interaction Skills cluster (presented next) with a lower concentration in specific industries and occupations. Whereas skills in other clusters such as Business and Management or High-tech Skills are generally used by specific types of workers in specific industries (e.g., a project manager at a bank might use Salesforce, a full-stack developer at a tech start-up might use Python), transversal language or office skills may be necessary in a number of contexts which does not necessarily depend on a worker’s occupational task or an industry’s output. Common non-digital skills in this cluster include proofreading and meeting minute-taking skills that support administrative and accounting roles. These non-digital skills in this cluster complement digital skills such as Microsoft Suite applications including Excel, Word and OneNote, which are useful for tasks such as data entry, maintaining a general ledger, information filing, and financial reporting.

Video conferencing software is prevalent in this cluster. Aptitude in platforms such as Google Meet, Microsoft Teams and Zoom became highly in-demand over the course of the pandemic as it was the default method of communication between teams in corporate and office-based roles. Between 2019 and 2021,43 growth in job postings containing this skill has more than doubled (a 109 percent increase), with an average annual growth rate of close to 45 percent. In fields such as health care, the ability to conduct virtual consultations were instrumental to curtail the spread of COVID-19.

Cluster 4: Communication and Interaction skills

This cluster includes the lowest number of digital skills, and generally does not contain many digitally-intensive technologies or skills, as seen in Figure 9. A combination of spoken and sign language skills (which are non-digital) are the most common, and includes other auditory communications. Skills in this cluster complement one another in their need for fluency in different languages to communicate with and interpret results. Many digital skills that show up in this cluster tend to be ones that relate to collaboration, such as the WhatsApp chat platform, and Oracle Beehive (an enterprise collaboration software). These skills also tend to have lower-intensity digital skills that appear in this cluster, including WhatsApp.

Other digital skills in this cluster are concentrated around software for 3D modeling (Computer-Aided Three-Dimensional Interactive Application, or CATIA), photo imaging (IRIS), sound editing (Audacity) and taxation (Intuit TurboTax). These skills have applications in client-facing tasks for architects, media, marketing, and financial services industry professionals. The ability for workers who are able to communicate with clients who speak different languages would have been vital in conducting business across sectors, especially during the pandemic as access to readily accessible translators may have been hindered by work setting restrictions. Digital tools like WhatsApp were also beneficial in maintaining client communications during the pandemic.

Cluster 5: Trades skills

Though this cluster covers the largest number of skills overall, it also has the highest share of non-digital skills, as seen in Figure 10. They are typically for the skilled trades, of which there are more than 300 defined trades in Canada encompassing sectors such as construction, transportation, manufacturing and industrial, services, and information and digital technology.44 The skills required are largely hands-on and technical expertise for tasks such as maintenance, manufacturing, construction, mechanical and electrical repairs, plumbing, and installation of machinery.45 Most of these trades require the knowledge to use machinery and electronic tools such as power tools, HVAC, and welding, which are categorized as non-digital skills.

The top five digital skills in this cluster all fall under tools and equipment or analytical/scientific and program testing software, including using channel banks to organize telecommunications lines, hydroelectric generating units, OMICRON Test Universe software (which supports the testing and monitoring of energy meters, voltage regulators, and other electrical devices), Rockwell RSLogix software (otherwise known as Studio 5000 Logix, which is used to design and maintain hardware systems), and radon monitors. Roles that may commonly use these top digital skills include operational and maintenance technicians in hydroelectric power plants, the telecommunications industry, and power quality technicians. These digital skills enable workers to operate technologies and tools that will supplement the accuracy and efficiency of their critical infrastructure maintenance processes.

Cluster 6: Sales and Merchandising skills

This cluster has a high concentration of non-digital skills which tend to be used by workers in hands-on and physical in-person industries such as sales, service, and manufacturing. The digital skills present in the cluster are often focused on tasks such as inventory management, planning and logistics, and resource and facilities management of an enterprise. The most prominent digital skill in this cluster is the use of point of sale (POS) systems. This software is commonly used in e-commerce, retail industries and restaurants to track their merchandising, inventory and sales. Shopify is an example of an e-commerce company that offers POS software to process and enable in-person sales. These digital skills co-exist with non-digital transversal soft skills, like teamwork, communication skills, and customer service, reflecting that skills within this cluster are used mostly in client-facing roles such as cashiers, restaurant and resort workers, and warehouse workers.

Relative to other clusters, the mix of skills in this cluster are low in digital intensity, as seen in Figure 11. Accordingly, the digital skills that are part of this cluster are mostly considered workforce digital skills such as POS software, and inventory and warehousing software. During the pandemic, the importance of non-digital skills highlighted in this cluster, such as teamwork, communication skills, customer service, flexibility, organizational skills, fast-paced setting, attention to detail, and interpersonal skills, became exceedingly clear. As businesses moved to work remotely and serve customers virtually, core communication and interpersonal skills have remained vital to keep in touch with customer bases, despite the move away from traditional customer service strategies.46

Hybrid skills across clusters 

The job postings analysis highlights that employers often seek both digital and non-digital skills when seeking job candidates. Many occupations, including high digital intensity ones, require some degree of non-digital, interpersonal and/or “soft skills” to accompany digital or technical skills. This is exemplified by our analysis on hybrid skills, with skill pairings between digital and non-digital skills signifying the complementary nature of these skills. For instance, digital skills pertaining to Microsoft Suite programs (e.g., Word, Excel, Outlook) commonly appear alongside non-digital, social-emotional (communication and teamwork) and more general occupational skills (e.g., customer service). These trends indicate that the need for digital skills does not supplant the need for non-digital skills, as both are sought out by employers in the labour market.

We present two illustrative examples of frequently appearing hybrid skills pairs across clusters, and profile other frequently appearing hybrid pairs in Appendix C.

Example #1: General Office-based skills and Sales and Merchandising skills 

The most frequently appearing hybrid skill pairs are non-digital skills from Sales and Merchandising co-occurring with digital skills from the General Office-based Skills cluster, which collectively co-occur over 20 million times in the dataset. Digital skills in the General Office-based skills cluster include Microsoft Suite tools, accounting software, and Intuit QuickBooks, which are prominently used across office work settings to organize and manage projects and finances. Non-digital skills in Sales and Merchandising include skills such as teamwork, communication skills, and time management, all of which are crucial to managing interpersonal relationships. The pandemic also gave rise to a higher demand in strong communications skills when workers had to adapt to a changing work environment and companies had to speed up their digital transformation to facilitate this transition.

Many occupations, including high digital intensity ones, require some degree of non-digital, interpersonal and/or “soft skills” to accompany digital or technical skills.

Though neither cluster ranks highly on the digital intensity scale, the skills demanded in each cluster have the greatest prevalence across jobs, sectors and occupations. Furthermore, as Figure 1247 shows, high co-occurring digital and non-digital skills have relatively low digital-intensity scores, compared to other hybrid skills.

Given the ease of use, accessibility, and adaptability of Microsoft Suite tools across operating systems, as well as the relative ease to grasp compared to other digital skills, these general workforce digital skills have become the default digital skills for the vast majority of worker contexts for whom their job is not primarily digital. The need for the ability to analyze and comprehend information, then to further distill and communicate information to teams and customers are supplemented with these digital tools. Furthermore, the bundle of tools within Microsoft Office enhance productivity, scheduling, calendar appointments (Outlook), keeping track of numbers (Excel) and cloud storage (OneDrive). Tools like Outlook and Teams require sharp communication skills that enable smooth collaboration between team members, with these skills becoming more important with the rise of remote work.

Outside of Microsoft skills (the top 30 hybrid pairs within these clusters contain Microsoft Suite skills such as Excel, Word and Office, accounting for over 18 million co-occurrences), the top hybrid skills pairings are found in Table 1.

Table 1

Top hybrid skills pairings between digital General Office-based skills and non-digital Sales and Merchandising skills48

Example #2: High-tech skills and Business and Management skills 

Hybrid skill pairs from the Business and Management Skills and High-tech Skills clusters have the highest digital intensity rankings (as seen in Figure 13), with skills in Business and Management more concentrated in offices, business management, and corporate settings, and skills in High-tech skills tending to concentrate in software and IT-based roles.

Skill pairings such as problem solving and proficiency in structured query language (SQL), and technical support with planning are hybrid skill combinations that require both technical expertise to understand and interpret data and information. On a management level, having leadership skills may just be as important as having technical skills. Not only does a manager need to understand the complexities of the work that their team conducts, it is necessary for managers to know how to provide guidance and oversee the overall direction of tasks. This is where planning and project management skills come into play. Job postings with this hybrid skill cluster may look for individuals who are able to manage IT systems and work with software, on top of performing business operations.

Outside of Microsoft Suite digital skills in the High-tech cluster (which includes Microsoft Azure, SharePoint and Power BI, making up one million of co-occurrences), the top hybrid pairs in these clusters are shown in Table 2.

Table 2

Top hybrid skills pairings between digital High-tech skills and non-digital Business and Management skills

Summary of Findings

From the extensive research and data analysis in The Skills Algorithm, some key findings emerge: 

1. Six broad skills clusters are formed across all occupations. Captured from 9 million job postings from 2020 to 2023, these skills clusters— spanning the highest digital intensity (high-tech skills) to the lowest (sales and merchandising skills)—are shaped by the occupational tasks that require them, from high tech skills for software development to trades skills used for construction or automotive jobs. Each skills cluster contains a mixture of digital and non-digital skills, with each skill varying in digital intensity.
2. Analyzing only the digital skills, five sub-clusters were identified. Digital skills, representing 2,198 of the 4,964 total unique skills (or 44 percent), are typically those with the highest digital intensity. These digital skills sub-clusters remained relatively consistent with the four identified in the precursor report I, Human (2019), though two new sub-clusters emerged: Industrial Modelling and Geospatial Software and Design and Marketing.
3. The most in-demand digital skills were for general workforce tasks. Among all digital skills, the low digital intensity skills for using Microsoft Suite programs (Excel, Word, Access) were the most common in job postings by a vast margin, consistent with the 2019 study. Other digital skills with significant growth in job posting occurrences included artificial intelligence and others for high digital intensity occupations, e-charting software in health care, and general workforce skills associated with remote work.
4. There were notable changes in skills demand during the pandemic. Amid public health concerns, the pandemic induced a change in the skills profiles of workers through digitization and remote work. While the proportion of digital skills listed by employers in job postings fell during the pandemic, there was also small but significant growth in demand for lower digital intensity general workforce skills such as use of Zoom and Microsoft Teams video conferencing platforms, whereas higher digital intensity skills typical of tech sector workers saw less change in demand. There was also growth in demand for non-digital health, safety, and environmental skills such as the use of protective gear and first aid.
5. Employers are seeking hybrid (digital and non-digital) skills. Reinforcing the findings of I, Human (2019), this study revealed the complementarity of digital and non-digital skills, reflected in employer demand expressed in job postings. A number of these hybrid skills—teamwork, communication, interpersonal and leadership skills— are transversal, commonly in demand across all or most of the digital skills sub-clusters, though they vary depending on the specific occupational profile.

Implications for policy, workforce planning and education 

The analysis and findings of this study are important for government policymakers focused on education and labour market development, industry and organizational leaders, practitioners in human resources and workforce planning, and postsecondary administrators and system leaders, among other audiences. This section outlines key implications and some actionable opportunities that emerge from The Skills Algorithm, focused on the strategic alignment of skills demand in the economy with the current and future labour supply pipeline.

The report presents a detailed picture of the skills demand in the Canadian labour market to 2023, zooming in on and differentiating the various categories of digital skills. The findings suggest a few significant implications for policy, workforce planning, and education in Canada.

First, the skills employers are seeking from workers are evolving at pace, and the workforce disruption and accelerated digitization of the pandemic has amplified this process in some ways. This likely reflects the emergence of new jobs in some instances, but more significantly that the occupational profiles of existing jobs are shifting to reflect demand for new digital and non-digital skills. The present and future talent pipeline to the labour market, higher education, training and skills development program providers must be adapting just as quickly to keep up.

Second, there continues to be significant demand for high digital intensity skills in the ICT industry and other sectors of the economy, reflected in the high-tech skills cluster and across the Software/Product Development and Data and the Cybersecurity and System Infrastructure digital skills sub-clusters. Demand for some of these high intensity digital skills, such as in AI coding skills in C++ and C#, have been growing briskly. Yet, the most ubiquitous demand from employers continues to be for low digital intensity general workforce skills. These types of skills should be recognized as the new “baseline” for most jobs in our modern economy.

Third, public narratives and the education and workforce policy discourse has been highly focused on the need to develop digital skills for today’s economy, prioritizing education and training in the STEM disciplines (typically more aligned to medium-and high-intensity digital skills). This report does not discount the importance of developing that talent pipeline, but it reinforces the finding that employers are seeking workers with a blend of digital and non-digital skills—and notably with hybrid and transversal skills like teamwork, communication, leadership, and project management.

The most ubiquitous demand from employers continues to be for low digital intensity general workforce skills. These types of skills should be recognized as the new “baseline” for most jobs in our modern economy.

For the report’s various audiences, a few actionable opportunities or recommendations emerge: 

1. Large employers and industry intermediaries should incorporate this type of skills demand analysis into their workforce planning. For major Canadian employers like governments and banks, sector associations, chambers of commerce and other intermediaries that support small and medium enterprises (SMEs), leveraging this type of analysis will allow more responsiveness to the changing skills profiles of jobs and their workforce. Open access to granular skills-demand data, and do-it-yourself tools like Labour Market Information Council’s Canadian Job Trends Dashboard presenting this skills data, would be key enablers. Furthermore, this analysis could be done at a more granular geographic and industry level, which enables workforce planners and employers to provide more targeted workforce preparation and skills training. The Dais and other research and advisory organizations with expertise in Labour Market Information (LMI) analysis can offer support.
2. Governments should use skills demand analysis to inform education and skills policymaking and the design of skills development funding programs. The federal, provincial, and territorial governments set policy and funding for postsecondary policy and student aid programs, employment and training systems, and a variety of skills development and upskilling programs. Governments should explore how skills demand analysis can inform policymaking, and where it can be used to incentivize funding programs to achieve better outcomes for learners, workers, employers, and the workforce broadly.
3. Education and training providers should adopt agile approaches to adapting programs and curricula to reflect changing skills demands. Recognizing that workforce skills demand trends will continue to evolve rapidly and unpredictably, education and training providers should incorporate skills demand data into program planning to stay on top of skills trends, inform the ongoing adaptation of existing curricula, and the launch of new programs. This ensures graduates are equipped for the evolving job market and ensure responsiveness to labour market demands from employers or to respond to the changing industrial composition of the Canadian economy.
4. Education and training providers, and government funders, should use skills demand analysis to focus resources on upskilling for the most in-demand skills. Microcredentials and other alternative credentials have been proliferating, offering short programs for postsecondary students and increasingly upskilling professionals, focused narrowly on development of a skill or competency, often with industry or employer partners. Providers, employers and learners will all benefit where these programs are aligned to timely information on workforce skills demand and gaps.
5. Canadian policy researchers and education and skills partners should conduct further analysis on the linkages between higher education programming, employer skills demand and job outcomes. Academic institutions, industry, government, skills data providers, and non-profit intermediaries all play a role in helping to close the skills development knowledge gap. The Dais at Toronto Metropolitan University is eager to continue this work, building on the findings and implications of The Skills Algorithm.

Recognizing that workforce skills demand trends will continue to evolve rapidly and unpredictably, education and training providers should incorporate skills demand data into program planning to stay on top of skills trends, inform the ongoing adaptation of existing curricula, and the launch of new programs.

Appendices

Appendix A: Vicinity Jobs Data

Table A.1 breaks down the total number of job postings by year, and the number of postings with skills data. There is a higher share of job postings containing skills data over time, which signifies better quality job postings data. An increase in skills ratio signifies that job postings have become more descriptive over time, or a greater need from employers for a wider range of skills.

Table A.1

Descriptive statistics of Vicinity Jobs postings by year

Limitations of job postings data

The Labour Market Information Council (LMIC) has analyzed the robustness of using job postings data (specifically Vicinity Jobs data) in calculating labour demand. Some limitations to using job postings data that were identified include the representativeness of job postings data (given that not all job openings are posted online), the lack of indication on how important a skill is for an occupation (and subsequently, how much of a factor it is in determining whether a candidate gets hired), some implicit skills are not listed, etc. More information about Vicinity Jobs data and their limitations can be found on LMIC’s website.67

Online job postings data only captures a subset of new job demand in the labour market, as it only contains job postings posted publicly through the internet; in-person recruitment and internal postings in companies and organizations are not captured. The magnitude of the prevalence of hiring in these contexts are unknown. In addition, skills trends in existing occupied jobs are not captured through job postings data. While these limitations do not allow us to tell the aggregate movement of skills trends in the labour market as a whole, it provides us with a sense of comparative skills movements intertemporally within the labour market.

Other limitations of online job postings data could include those in white-collar occupations and industries, which often lean toward high-skilled computer-based and digital roles, and for those who have a university education. LMIC has conducted a study of the representativeness of online job postings data compared to Statistics Canada’s Job Vacancy and Wage Survey (JVWS).68 It was found that occupations that require only a secondary school level of education, occupation-specific training, or on-the-job training tend to be underrepresented online. This results in occupations69 within Sales and Service and Trades and Transportation having a lower share of online postings, and an undercounting of skills demand in those types of jobs as a result.

Furthermore, skills that are “implicitly assumed” or unobservable have a higher chance of being unlisted when an employer puts out a job posting, which tend to be soft social-emotional skills rather than hard digital skills.70

Furthermore, LMIC has found that online job postings underrepresent jobs in metropolitan areas such as Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. However, the share of job postings in each province is roughly representative of JVWS estimates. Other measures of representativeness can be found in their LMI Insight Report no. 36.71

Mis-categorization of skills in job postings

The methodology in which skills and job postings are captured leads to the likelihood of some level of some mis-categorization. As skills are categorized based on textual analysis of keywords in the job postings, certain skills such as Excavator, Magma, Ferret, Kant, and Pascal (to name a few) were falsely captured in certain job postings. To correct for this, some skills have been removed from our analysis based on a manual assessment of the job postings which contained them. Furthermore, we assume the number of these mis-classifications to be relatively small, and not at a scale which distorts the results of our findings.

Job postings information

The exhaustive list of parameters which are available across job postings is presented below. Not all job postings have enough detailed information across these parameters that could be collected by Vicinity Jobs.

• Job title
• Employer (the employer name as listed in job posting, and the employer name associated with the Vicinity Jobs’ profile for the employer)
• Location (town/city)
• District region
• Economic Development Region
• Province
• Date when the posting was retrieved
• Hourly wage
• Minimum and maximum in wage range offered (identified as hourly wage or annual wage)
• 5-digit NOC occupation code
• Occupational and Skills Information System (OaSIS) code72
• Sub-occupation code (expands upon OaSIS codes)
• 6-digit NAICS industry code
• Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities (TEER) category73
• Experience required
• Level of education required
• Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) requirements74 (on a 2-digit or 4-digit level)
• Whether the occupation was advertised by the employer or through a job board
• Website source where the job posting was found
• Job type (full-time or part-time)
• Job duration (temporary or permanent)
• Certifications required
• Skill requirements (a list of skills retrieved from the posting)
• Includes name of skill, Vicinity Jobs skill group, and Vicinity Jobs skill sub-group
• Standardized job title
• Primary language the posting was published in
• English or French language requirement

Appendix B: Detailed Clusters and Sub-clusters

Threshold identification for digital skills 

In order to identify digital skills based on digital intensity, two thresholds were tested. In addition to skills identified as digital skills based on Vicinity Jobs’ groupings and sub-groupings, a subset of the remaining skills in the seventy-fifth percentile of digital intensity and fiftieth percentile of digital intensity was analyzed. 2,098 digital skills were identified under the seventy-fifth percentile threshold, whereas 2,458 were identified using the fiftieth percentile threshold. Two rounds of validation were conducted where a random sample of 100 skills were selected and manually identified as digital or non-digital. The manual assignment of digital skills was then matched up against how the skills were identified in both threshold identification methods. The seventy-fifth percentile threshold was identified as the optimal threshold which minimized the number of false positives and false negatives (with 93 percent agreement with the manual assignment of digital skills).

Table A.2

Validation results from the threshold assignment of digital skills

Overall skill clusters

Table A.3

Overall skills clusters ranked from most to least digitally intensive

Digital sub-clusters

Table A.4

Digital sub-clusters summary statistics (2020-2023)75

Table A.5

Top 10 digital skills in each skill cluster (2020-2023)

Top 10 digital skills pairs

Table A.6

Top digital skills pairs83

Top growing digital skills

Table A.7

Fastest-growing digital skills during the pandemic (2019-2021)

Table A.8

Growth of most in-demand digital skills86 during the pandemic (2019-2021)

An overview of all digital skills growth is presented below in Figure A.1.

Appendix C: Hybrid Skill Pairs

Table A.9

Top non-digital skill co-occurrences with Microsoft skills

Table A.10

Interaction of digital and non-digital skills between clusters

Examples of hybrid skills across clusters

General Office-based skills and Business and Management skills 

The Business and Management skills cluster and the General Office-based skills cluster are the second most prevalent hybrid skills cluster combination, made up of complementary skills used in office, management, and corporate settings, and skills used to support tasks that are not primarily concentrated in the creation of digital products. In particular, there is a large co-occurrence of General Office-based digital skills with non-digital Business and Management skills. As seen in Figure A.2,87 while general office digital skills are not inherently digitally intensive, non-digital skills in the Business and Management cluster have relatively higher digital intensities compared to other non-digital skills in many other clusters. Skills such as project management, quantitative and qualitative research, and financial risk management may not be inherently digital, yet they are often supplemented with some software skills to support their occupational tasks and supplement the output of their work.

These hybrid skill pairings are frequently seen in a wide range of jobs, from accountants, architects, and engineers, to individuals working in the financial, sustainability, and business management sector more broadly. Pairing Microsoft Excel or other Microsoft Suite software with non-digital soft skills such as and leadership, or other Microsoft Office Suite software paired with a variety of non-digital skills such as leadership, supervisory skills, problem solving, project management, and analytical skills appear together frequently. These skill combinations could be useful in roles that require the organization and presentation of information using Microsoft Office Suite tools, with a knack to manage business operations using skills like indicating/tracking key performance indicators, being able to negotiate, and multi-task.

The wide applicability of skills within these clusters could equate to its prevalence and demand across a number of industries, all of which might require some sort of occupation-specific training in operating some role-specific software and tools, while also having the ability to perform as a leader, perhaps in a managerial capacity.

The top co-occurrences of skills, (with the exclusion of Microsoft Suite skills such as Excel, Word and Office ), which make up the top 47 co-occurring hybrid pairs, which appear over eight million times) are presented in Table A.11.

Table A.11

Top hybrid skills pairings between, digital General Office-based skills and non-digital Business and Management skills88

High-tech skills and Sales and Merchandising skills: 

We also observe a large number of co-occurrences of digital skills in the High-tech skills cluster and non-digital skills in the Sales and Merchandising skills cluster. Pictured in Figure A.3, the link between the most digitally intensive cluster (High-tech) and the least digitally intensive cluster (Sales and Merchandising) demonstrates that digital skills do not supplant the need for soft skills.

With a digital skill such as technical support, the ability to advise and assist would require skills in customer service and troubleshooting to support users with issues concerning their technical products. For example, if an Apple Mac computer user faces trouble in their iOS system, the user could set up an appointment at the Genius Bar for problem resolution. Technical support could be provided through various modes of communication, including email, live chat, telephone, or in-person, which all require customer interaction. In addition, workers in many high-tech roles such as data scientists, data analysts, and data engineers would have to collaborate with colleagues ranging in different levels of technical expertise. This requires effective communication of any system issues arising while creating digital platforms/products, as well as liaising with technical writers and designers. Across many examples of high-tech workers, having interpersonal and communication to supplement digital skills are highly valuable to the success of their role.

Outside of Microsoft Suite digital skills in the High-tech cluster (which includes Microsoft Azure, SharePoint and Power BI, making up 1.4 million of co-occurrences), the top hybrid pairs in these clusters are shown in Table A.12.

Table A.12

Top hybrid skills pairings between, digital High-tech skills and non-digital Sales and Merchandising skills

Top hybrid skills across digital sub-clusters 

A key finding of I, Human (2019), that is reinforced by this study, is the complementarity of digital and non-digital skills, reflected in employer demand as expressed in job postings. Table A.13 presents the top non-digital skills as reported with digital skills in each of the five sub-clusters. A number of these hybrid soft skills—teamwork, communication, interpersonal and leadership skills—are transversal, commonly in demand across all or most of the sub-clusters (and subsequently, the occupations that require them). Non-digital skills interact differently depending on digital intensity and the purpose of different digital skills. Within each digital sub-cluster, there are variations in the types of non-digital skills that would enhance the work that is conducted.

Table A.13

Top 10 non-digital skills in each digital sub-cluster