A group of candidates waiting to be interviewed

By historical standards, unemployment remains low, yet supply and demand remain out of balance. Job openings are at 10-year highs, but candidates are still struggling to find the right fit both professionally and culturally. These Top 5 jobs are leading the way into 2016.

NOTE: For anyone looking to enter the field of software engineering, check out the beginner-based programs offered by DaVinci Coders.

I recently spoke with Elise Voss, CEO and Co-founder of UpScored, a NY-based career platform that uses data science to help candidates discover personalized job recommendations.

According to the company, there has been a paradigm shift in what people want out of their careers. The need for more responsibility, faster career progression and flexible work hours has become more important than ever before.

Given the change in candidate wants and needs, the interest level in working for startups has accelerated significantly over the past few years.

UpScored recently took a deeper look at trends in the startup job market. The team analyzed tens of thousands of data points across job descriptions at the top 200 startups, including Airbnb, Slack, & Snapchat, to find the top job openings in January.

They also analyzed both required and preferred skills, work experience, and degrees across each category.

 

These are the Top 5 most prevalent job openings and related skills in the startup world:

1. Software Engineer

While it isn’t surprising that Software Engineer made the top of the list, it is notable that demand for technical talent at startups hasn’t decelerated. Can you guess the most desired coding language among the top 200 startups? Python came in at #1 with 42% of Software Engineering job descriptions listing the language. Close seconds were Javascript (38%) and Java (35%). As for degrees, 20% of Software Engineer openings either require or prefer a master’s.

 

2. Account Manager

Salesforce still dominates the requirements for this role. A whopping 50% of Account Manager descriptions listed Salesforce as a skill. Needless to say, it’s worth including Salesforce on your resume if you have the relevant experience. Additionally, MBA requirements are a hot topic with Sheryl Sandberg having commented that “MBAs are not necessary at Facebook” in a recent interview.  Only 7% of Account Manager roles prefer a MBA versus 25% of Business Development & Strategy roles, which came in lower on UpScored’s list of top job openings.

 

3. Data & Analytics Professional

With the growth of new technology, the amount of data to analyze has grown at an exorbitant pace. According to UpScored, data science and analytics is starting to infiltrate every part of the organization – from sales and operations to talent acquisition. Similar to Software Engineering roles, Python is a top skill included in 53% of data job descriptions. SQL is still required for most roles, though with big data technology becoming more prevalent, the skill set is evolving. On a different note, approximately 37% of these roles prefer a master’s while 13% prefer a PhD. With the proliferation of data science bootcamps like Metis and NYC Data Science Academy, the preference for masters and PhDs may decrease over the next few years.

 

4. HR & Talent Acquisition Professional 

The growing focus on “people analytics” is showing up in the numbers, and the importance placed on this role has certainly increased in the last year. What’s interesting is that 49% of the openings analyzed in UpScored’s study are looking for candidates with experience in “technology recruiting.” In fact, more job descriptions listed “technology” than general sourcing (46%) and interviewing (40%). Another trend to watch in recruiting is social media, as approximately 15% of Talent Acquisition descriptions now require social media skills.

 

5. Product Manager

Product Manager is an ambiguous title that can require a range of different skills depending on the company and specific position. That said, the primary skills required for this role include product strategy, launch, and development (in that order). Approximately 43% of Product Manager descriptions either require or prefer a computer science background. Additionally, experience with Agile software development methodologies is preferred in 25% of the roles with Scrum and Kanban preferred in 7% and 3%, respectively.

Interested in a role above, but lacking the required skills? Luckily, there is a myriad of both online and offline resources for candidates. Companies such as General Assembly offer in-person courses for beginners and intermediaries, while sites like Coursera, InfluenceTree and edX offer a wide range of MOOC’s (Massive Open Online Courses). Now that you know the data, there’s no better time than the present.

Image Credit: wisebread.com
Article via inc.com