Career Development Category Archives - General Assembly Blog | Page 8

Do you love retail therapy? How about the idea of a career that puts you on the leading edge of new product launches—ones that improve lives daily? If you dream of working in retail or ecommerce, a tech role might be the best way to break into the business, as retail is a top 6 employer of tech talent.

The blanket term “retail” encompasses any business that directly sells consumer goods. Retailers can include e-commerce sales that take place across the web, as well as brick-and-mortar stores like supermarkets, department stores, or specialty mom-and-pop shops. Household goods, appliances, fashion apparel, beauty products, toys, entertainment like video games—these subsets are all part of a $30.3 trillion global industry.

Tech represented a bright spot in the economy as one of the best industries to work in during the pandemic. With flexible, high-paying jobs, it was incredibly attractive to many people embarking upon new career paths. Then, a shift: as economic uncertainties carried on through 2022, Google, Microsoft and Amazon laid off over 70,000 employees—the start of a downsizing tide that included Salesforce, Meta, Twitter, Stripe, Shopify, and others.  

But that’s not the whole story.

As companies increasingly hire for skills, not degrees, there is more opportunity than ever to break into tech or grow your career off the traditional beaten path. Major companies like Google, Delta, Mastercard and Bank of America have shifted to skills-based hiring. However, you might be asking: what exactly are those skills companies are hiring for? 

We spoke to General Assembly instructors and tech professionals at Uber and Doordash to uncover the top skills they see hiring managers looking for in 2023, whether you want to switch careers or land that promotion. Here are the 5 skills you should learn to take your career to the next level this year.