Skills for net-zero
TL;DR: Net-Zero skills are a hot topic for companies large and small – because the skills required to achieve carbon reduction are often new, and hugely in demand. This article shows the increase in demand for four clusters of Net-Zero related skills: Climate, Carbon Reduction, Green Architecture and Sustainability. Demand for these skills has increased up to 500% in the last 2 years alone. All businesses need to understand the skills they will need to deploy, to achieve carbon reduction and deliver their ESG targets.
Top growing Net-zero skills in the UK and US market.
Sized by change in percentage of job posts demanding the skill between 2021 and 2022.
The situation
Major corporations are increasingly publishing, and measured on, their ESG strategies and commitments. To date 82 of the FTSE 100 companies have committed to achieving ‘Net-Zero’ emissions by 2050. But less than a third of all UK businesses have a strategy for reaching net zero and almost half feel overwhelmed by the steps they need to take to reach carbon neutrality. Leading organisations are being clear on the skills their business needs, the skills they have, and how best to close skills gaps to deliver their sustainability strategy.
To help people get started, we have taken a deep dive into the most popular and fastest growing Net-Zero related skills across the UK and US between 2021 and 2022.
The fastest growing and most popular Net-Zero skills
We have focussed on skills related to transition planning and driving overall sustainability strategies. Skills are divided into four clusters:
Sustainability – Related to defining how to meet our own needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs.
Climate – The understanding and management of long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns.
Carbon and Air Quality – Specifically focussed on reducing or eliminating emissions from society, or achieving net-zero emissions
Green Architecture – In building and architecture, the use of sustainable energy sources, the conservation of energy, the reuse and safety of building materials, and the siting of a building with consideration of its impact on the environment.
Solution or industry specific skills, for example those required to insulate homes or maintain wind turbines, and transferrable skills, such as data analysis and leadership, aren’t covered in this analysis.
You can explore the rest of the selected skills in the interactive tool below:
Three ways Simply can help
Identify critical Net-Zero skills: This analysis is an example of the kind of insight available in our Simply Rightskilling platform. If you need to build your workforce and skills for net-zero, a starting point can be defining the key skills required. Check out our skills taxonomy page for a starter for 10.
Invest in new skills for key roles: Simply’s library of 72,000 role profiles can identify where you should prioritise investment in training and development related to achieving your Net-Zero plan.
Find skills in the market: Data on where you can find these high-demand skills by location, employer and role can help to drive strategic workforce planning and optimise talent acquisition strategies.
Simply. The rightskilling platform.
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Simply uses data and machine learning to define your skills strategy, build the skills architecture you need to make it happen, and pinpoints how to rightskill your workforce, fast. Learn more here, follow Simply here or get in touch at info@simplygetresults.com to discuss your needs and book a demo.