The labour market can be a difficult place to navigate for employers, especially right now, as the pace and scale of digital transformation creates new needs, opportunities and vulnerabilities. Most roles demand specific skill sets which are easy enough to test and hire for, but managers and owners have begun to realize that more general skills with broad applications across roles and industries are frequently the most valuable long term. Roles can be trained for, but macro-level modern workplace competencies require some education.
If you are looking to hire in 2021, below are the top certifications to be on the lookout for.
CMA
The Certified Management Accounting designation is offered through the Institute of Management Accountants and it is focused on management accounting and corporate finance. It is a versatile dual certificate that concentrates on both finance and accounting and those who hold them are trained in the holistic financial understanding of organizations and management practices.
CMA’s are able to advise management on investment opportunities, risk management, planning, budgeting, strategy and decision making. The CMA is a broadly applicable designation that, in the right hands, adds immediate value to any management or finance-related role.
The CMA is different from the CPA and other accounting designations because it does not focus exclusively on accounting. Candidates with the CMA have a broad, holistic business understanding and are capable of finding and suggesting remedies to organizational and management inefficiencies.
Data Analyst Certifications
The modern company is undergoing digital transformation at an incredible rate. Businesses are generating a tremendous amount of data at all levels of the organization–data that needs to be parsed and interpreted in order to make better strategic decisions and compete in an increasingly data-driven world.
Employers should pay close attention to those applicants whose resumes include things like Microsoft’s Certified Azure Data Scientist Associate certificate, Open Certified Data Scientist, the Certified Analytics Professional certificate and the Cloudera Certified Associate (CCA) Data Analyst. Having people on your team who are capable of turning raw data into actual information that informs strategy and drives growth is invaluable.
Remote Work Officer
This is a new certification and position that many companies will be looking to fill as the remote work revolution continues to completely change organizational dynamics. It is one with potentially massive implications because people hired for the Chief Remote Work Officer position will help companies develop strategic plans for acclimating employees to remote work, developing ways to maintain and grow interpersonal and professional connections among coworkers, and analyzing which workflows must be changed to accommodate the new remote work dynamic.
Candidates with remote work designations will increasingly be relied upon by businesses to help transition over from hybrid to permanent remote work. Business owners who have been struggling with the changes, or have workforces who are having a hard time adapting to new remote work dynamics, could benefit from the insights and knowledge of a remote work officer.
Cybersecurity Certifications
Cybersecurity is another concern that employers must start taking more seriously. Not only has the pace of digital transformation greatly increased the number of vulnerabilities that cybercriminals now have to exploit, but the work from home arrangement means employees are now logging into and accessing work systems remotely, often on unsecured or poorly secured networks.
It is well established that a company’s biggest cybersecurity threat is its own people. This is not for any nefarious reasons, but comes down to the fact that most people are not well versed in the threats that exist online and how to mitigate them.
Job applicants with cybersecurity education and certifications on their resumes, whether they are experts with formal education or have undergone cybersecurity training as part of professional development at a previous company, are inherently better suited to working remotely and helping manage the associated risks. If you are considering upping your cybersecurity infrastructure and capabilities in 2021, employees with this sort of training, whether IT professionals or otherwise, are assets.
Conclusion
Hiring for the workplace of the future means taking time to consider not only whether candidates have the raw technical skills required for the role they are being evaluated for, but also whether they have any broader skill sets and certifications that are highly applicable throughout the organization and at the strategic level. CMAs, data analysts, remote work specialists and cybersecurity designations all provide high value regardless of where in the organization they are put to use.
Keep the above four certifications in mind as you shortlist candidates the next time you are trying to fill a position and don’t neglect the important general skills that are highly applicable to the modern workplace.