Digital literacy today is a gateway to employability and current workplace demands digital-fluency and in some cases, even digital-mastery, says Anant Maheshwari, president, Microsoft India.
In a LinkedIn post, Mr. Maheshwari spoke about the need to re-shape the education ecosystem, re-train talent for tomorrow, and the need for re-imagining our own transformation.
A large majority of those who work have CXO aspirations. In just two years, each of us would require different skill sets to be in the running to be a CXO, and more so if one was already in the C-suite, he wrote.
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“I meet CXOs across geographies and industry verticals each week. The consistent topic that stands out in all conversations is their aspiration to acquire more digital skills. The conversation then is about how this movement can be amplified 360 degree in their organisations, and how they can lead this within their own leadership teams. Increasing tech intensity among leaders and the workforce is now an imperative,” his post read.
Technological disruption, demographic changes and the evolving nature of work were making new demands of the workforce, he said. “The task is clear. We must narrow the skills gap now. Skill development is super critical for India’s growth curve to scale sustainably and inclusively.”
Emphasising the importance of reshaping the education for the future, Mr. Maheshwari wrote, “We must start early. Students in early-year classrooms now are different from the preceding generation. Their world is a finely integrated blend of digital and physical. They don’t learn how to use technology. Rather they use technology to learn.”
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“Digital literacy today is a gateway to employability. But that’s clearly not enough. Our current workplace demands digital-fluency, and in some cases, even digital-mastery. The rapid pace of transformation around us calls for relatively brief knowledge refresh cycles for all learning initiatives,” his post further read.