• Over 1 in 10 skills mentioned in UK job postings are basic technical skills like Microsoft Office, with AI skills only mentioned in 2.6% of jobs
• The highest ranking technical skills in UK job postings are Generic IT skills (10%), followed by Microsoft Office (6%) and Microsoft Excel (5%)
• Other in-demand skills are soft skills such as communication, organisation and leadership 
• Human work skills won’t be easily replaced by AI anytime soon. Out of more than 2,800 work skills assessed by hiring platform Indeed, the majority were “very unlikely” or “unlikely” to be replaced by GenAI

According to new research by hiring platform Indeed, for all the hype around AI, it’s basic rather than advanced technical skills that are in greatest demand by UK businesses. 

As Keir Starmer sets out an ambitious vision to position the UK as the global hub for AI, this intention isn’t yet mirrored in the country’s jobs market. Over 1 in 10 skills mentioned in UK job postings are just basic  technical skills like using Microsoft Office, with AI skills only featured in 2.6% of jobs. 

UK businesses want a mix of human skills and basic technical competencies 

The highest ranking technical skill in UK job postings is Generic IT skills (10% of all job postings), followed by Microsoft Office (6%) and Microsoft Excel (5%). The share of job postings asking for any basic computer skills stands at 8.1%, remaining steady for the past five years. That’s also true in other countries analysed, such as the US, where the share of postings asking for elementary digital skills is even higher at 17.2%.

The prevalence of basic digital skills, compared to advanced ones, is in part due to job postings being weak in highly technical sectors. High-tech jobs have seen the biggest slowdown over the past two years, having dropped 28% below their pre-pandemic baseline. By contrast, the low- and mid-tech tiers are 1% above the baseline and 5% below it, respectively. 

The most commonly listed skill in UK job postings is a soft skill – communication (30%). Other soft skills including leadership (9%) and organisation (7%) also feature in the ten most common skills in UK job ads. 

AI more likely to support workers than replace them 

Despite fears of an impending mass displacement of workers, human work skills won’t be easily replaced in the workforce anytime soon. Out of more than 2,800 work skills assessed by Indeed, none were deemed “very likely” to be replaced by GenAI. In fact, out of five possible outcomes (very unlikely, unlikely, possible, likely, very likely), the majority (68.7%) of skills assessed were “very unlikely” or “unlikely” to be replaced by GenAI.

The distribution of skills at which GenAI is potentially better or worse is not equal across the thousands of jobs available. Indeed’s analysis found that it is “possible” or “likely” that GenAI could replace a human at more than 71% of skills commonly found in job postings for software development occupations, for example. Whereas, only about 33% of skills found in the typical job posting for a nurse were rated as possible or likely to be replaced by GenAI. 

Further ahead, over a quarter of skills (29%) could possibly be replaced by GenAI in the future if businesses change some practices and the tools improve. 

Jack Kennedy, Senior Economist at hiring platform Indeed said: “While AI and other advanced technologies are likely to shape the future labour market, the current reality is that many employers are simply seeking workers with basic computer skills. While policymakers are highly focused on the AI impact, they would do well not to forget that there are still many people who don’t have elementary digital skills, shutting them off from opportunities and limiting talent pools available to employers. 

“Lacking basic digital skills is not only a disadvantage in the workplace, it’s also a barrier to gaining employment in the first place. If people don’t have the basic digital skills to search for a job online, for example, then they are shut out of a large part of today’s labour market. While AI may eventually necessitate a broad upskilling across the workforce to embrace advanced technologies, there remains a more pressing concern around closing basic digital skills gaps and allowing everyone to fully engage with work in the digital age.”