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Managers need more high-tech skills

The digital transformation of the economy is increasingly raising the requirements profile for managers. In addition to traditional management skills, they must have more and more digital competencies.
Andreas Wartenberg, Hager
March 16, 2018
Managers need more high-tech skills
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This text has been automatically translated from German to English.

Modern managers are required to keep an eye on corporate development and to drive the overall strategy forward. Know-how in areas such as artificial intelligence, cyber security or the Internet of Things is increasingly becoming a critical success factor in management alongside traditional skills.

CDO, IT security manager, mobile developer - ten years ago, these professions were largely unknown, but today they are among the most sought-after professions of all.

This development illustrates how strongly the labor market is currently changing. Job profiles are being created or are constantly changing, and digital skills are currently required in almost all industries.

Companies face the challenge of finding executives who can meet these high and complex demands. Tomorrow's executives must not only have basic digital skills, but also a dose of agility, so that they can quickly - but soundly - familiarize themselves with new topics and requirements and act in a solution-oriented manner.

In addition to classic skills such as assertiveness, empathy and complexity management, as well as technical skills, executives also need solid knowledge of the latest technologies and trending topics, be it blockchain, digitalization, AI, IoT or cyber security, according to the experienced headhunter.

Andreas Wartenberg

With regard to the strategic orientation of a company, managers are usually also called upon for planning and must set the course of a company with their expertise and know-how.

At the latest when new or more up-to-date technologies are used in companies, it is imperative that managers have the technical skills to implement them successfully and also to take employees along with them.

In order to successfully plan an entrepreneurial strategy, it is necessary for future executives to have a good knowledge of the possible applications as well as the challenges to be considered with new technologies.

For example, in the field of AI or IoT, the executives must have the technical understanding to be able to develop entrepreneurial strategies. The responsible executives must have visions - driven by the new technologies - from which they can create a suitable entrepreneurial strategy.

It often takes a lot of convincing to introduce something new into traditional corporate structures and to persuade board members or employees to embark on new paths.

Therefore, sound background knowledge is necessary in order to explain the strategy to all stakeholders in a comprehensible way and also to convince them. The areas of artificial intelligence and machine learning in particular are experiencing an unstoppable surge in development.

Artificial intelligence is already increasingly finding its way into our everyday lives and has long since become mainstream. Therefore, it is not enough to have only technological skills around the topic of AI, IoT and digitalization.

Leaders and knowledge workers must also have a strong affinity for digital media and also knowledge of the latest technology in order to make the right decisions in any leadership position.

Executives who are already open to new media and technologies are usually willing and also curious to embrace change and to continue their education in other technical topics as well. As a result, lifelong learning is also becoming increasingly important for executives in times of disruptive and constantly evolving technologies.

Companies whose senior management are not up to date with the latest knowledge stagnate and cannot drive their digital growth because new technologies cannot be identified and deployed.

It should be in the interest of every company to embrace new technologies and not shy away from further training measures.

Conclusion:

The demands on tomorrow's managers are becoming increasingly complex. In order to master the digital transformation in companies, they must have more and more high-tech skills.

A fundamental understanding of important future technologies such as AI, machine learning, IT security or IoT are essential. In order to close knowledge gaps and to always be up to date with the latest technology, permanent training is required.

It can make sense for companies to work with an experienced and specialized headhunter in the war for talent due to the ongoing shortage of highly qualified specialists and managers.

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Andreas Wartenberg, Hager

Andreas Wartenberg is Managing Director of Hager Unternehmensberatung


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