Job hunting can feel like a journey through the depths of hell and back, much like Dante’s epic adventure in the Divine Comedy – sending job applications as in the inferno, going through the interview process as in purgatory, and receiving a job offer as in paradise. Unlike Dante, very often, we’re endlessly stuck in the inferno of hopelessly sending job applications and not hearing back from anyone.
Don’t get beaten up yet! There is actually a way to increase your chance to get past the first stage of job hunting. Since more companies are using CV screening software nowadays – an AI tool that automatically matches job requirements and candidate qualifications based on their CVs, we source this year’s most attractive skill-based CV keywords in our database of over 1 million job ads.
In this article, you’ll find the most sought-after 20 soft skills and hard skills, and also industry-specific buzzwords to put in your CV so you have a better shot at securing the first interview.
Show off your management skill and flexibility
The economy is wild now. Businesses have a lot on their plates: inflation, labour strikes, and tighter budgets. They’re therefore desperately looking for managers to lead the pack – with more than one in three (37%) advertised job openings asking for management skills. Every sector wants its people to have these managerial skills, and eight sectors (Accounting & Finance, Energy, Engineering, HR & Recruitment, IT, Legal, PR & Marketing, and Scientific & QA) put that as their top priority. In fact, they’re not only after management skills. They’re also on the hunt for top-notch leadership (103,072 advertised jobs) and coaching (48,453 jobs) skills.
While the pandemic might be ending (thank god!), businesses are facing new challenges, explaining why many are looking for employees who can handle stress and sweeping changes. Over 300,000 job ads in January are asking for jobseekers to showcase flexibility, while nearly 50,000 job ads are looking for potential candidates who can thrive in a fast-paced environment.
In such times, having a positive and efficient work environment is crucial to avoid burnout and maintain operational efficiency. Candidates who put organised (162,905 jobs), innovative (94,367 jobs), detail-oriented, (73,707 jobs), and creative (72,064 jobs) examples on their CV have a higher chance to pass the first screening test. Interpersonal skills, including communication (248,168 jobs), customer service skill (117,539 jobs), teamwork (73,212 jobs), and collaborative (50,686 jobs) are equally appealing.
Personality is always a win for your application. After all, your potential employers are human, and they’re going to favour someone with a positive attitude. Put these adjectives in your CVs: friendly (114,241 jobs), confident (95,187 jobs), enthusiastic (58,509 jobs), reliable 55,273 jobs) and motivated (41,667 jobs).
| Rank | Soft skill | Proportion of job ads with this skill, Jan 2023 | Number of job ads with this skill, Jan 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Management | 36.4% | 325,497 |
| 2 | Flexibility | 34.8% | 311,669 |
| 3 | Communication | 27.7% | 248,168 |
| 4 | Organisation | 18.2% | 162,905 |
| 5 | Customer service | 13.1% | 117,539 |
| 6 | Friendly | 12.8% | 114,241 |
| 7 | Leadership | 11.5% | 103,072 |
| 8 | Confidence | 10.6% | 95,187 |
| 9 | Innovative | 10.5% | 94,367 |
| 10 | Attention to detail | 8.2% | 73,707 |
| 11 | Teamwork | 8.2% | 73,212 |
| 12 | Creativity | 8.1% | 72,064 |
| 13 | Enthusiastic | 6.5% | 58,509 |
| 14 | Reliability | 6.2% | 55,273 |
| 15 | Collaborative | 5.7% | 50,686 |
| 16 | Coaching | 5.4% | 48,453 |
| 17 | Fast-paced | 5.3% | 47,831 |
| 18 | Project management | 5.0% | 45,174 |
| 19 | Motivated | 4.7% | 41,667 |
| 20 | Interpersonal skills | 4.0% | 35,991 |
Hottest hard skills of 2023
As consumers are tightening their purse strings and being more cautious with big purchases, companies are on the hunt for employees with superb sales skills. In January 2023, over 120,000 job ads listed sales skills as a requirement, accounting for 14% of all job ads.
Following on, companies are also looking for candidates with engineering skills, driven by a rise in the engineering vacancies since November 2022.
With remote work and video meetings becoming the norm, employers are valuing skills like excellent reporting skills and a flair for email writing. Companies are looking for Microsoft Office pros (27k+ jobs), especially those who excel at Excel!
| Rank | Hard skill | Proportion of job ads with this skill, Jan 2023 | Number of job ads with this skill, Jan 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sales | 13.5% | 120,471 |
| 2 | Engineering knowledge | 12.9% | 115,304 |
| 3 | Reporting | 12.3% | 110,128 |
| 4 | Email writing | 9.7% | 86,473 |
| 5 | Excel | 7.7% | 69,091 |
| 6 | Finance knowledge | 7.3% | 65,420 |
| 7 | Marketing knowledge | 6.7% | 60,256 |
| 8 | Writing | 4.6% | 41,314 |
| 9 | Business development | 3.6% | 32,338 |
| 10 | Microsoft office | 3.0% | 27,091 |
| 11 | Procurement | 2.6% | 23,340 |
| 12 | Accounting | 2.6% | 23,336 |
| 13 | Social Media | 2.5% | 22,048 |
| 14 | SQL | 2.0% | 17,548 |
| 15 | Python | 1.8% | 15,974 |
| 16 | Troubleshooting | 1.8% | 15,729 |
| 17 | Due diligence | 1.7% | 14,938 |
| 18 | Counselling | 1.6% | 14,630 |
| 19 | AWS | 1.5% | 13,347 |
| 20 | Change management | 1.5% | 13,312 |
Attention, workers on strike or recently axed!
The tech sector was badly hit by the recent mass layoffs as a result of businesses’ cost-cutting initiatives or plans to recruit new blood. The good news is, programmers are always in hot demand. Those who are looking for a new role should include SQL, Python, Java, JavaScript, and HTML in their CVs. Show off soft skills like management, communication, flexibility, organisation, and thinking outside the box.
For nurses who’ve had enough of non-competitive pay, show off your email writing skills, knowledge of patient care, rehabilitation, reporting, and inpatient care in your CVs. Teachers, if you’re also looking to get paid more, highlight your email writing skills, due diligence, and behaviour management, as well as your friendly personality.
An interesting finding we discovered during our research is that employers value writing skills at all levels of work. Employers are looking for decent writers for emails, social media, and reports. Business writing such as copywriting and technical writing is more popular than creative writing.
Many candidates love putting foreign languages in the skill section of their CVs. A tip from us, French is the currently most asked for language skill, followed by Spanish, German, and Arabic fluency.
Motivated to apply for a job but unsure if your CV is standing out? Unlock your net worth and your career potential with our CV screening tool ValueMyCV.
Read more: The top sectors for remote working