Digital Skills for Professional Development and Leadership Skills

This report examines the digital development of recent years, highlighting continuing industrial advancements and the demand for specific digital skills. It reflects on management and leadership skills using various models, justifying a personal development plan to enhance effective management and leadership. The report covers digital technologies like 5G, IoT, cloud computing, and AI, emphasizing their impact on hybrid workplaces, digital banking, and customer support. It also discusses the benefits of digital skills in streamlining work processes, increasing flexibility, and improving communication. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of continuous digital skill development for personal and professional growth in a rapidly evolving technological landscape, supported by examples of companies using digital skills in their organizations for improved performance and productivity. Desklib offers this and many other solved assignments for students.

Digital Skills and Professional
Development
Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Examine the digital development of recent years and explain the continuing industrial
advancement and provide an overview of the digital skills sections in demand.........................1
Reflect on own management and leadership skills using a range of models and develop and
justify a personal development plan that will facilitate an increased level of effective
management and leadership.........................................................................................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
The Digital skills can be defined as the process of finding ability to find, analyse, use, share and
create the data or content by using the digital devices such as smart phones and personal
computers. The digital skills helps in the personal development of an individual as it helps
people in communicating and collaborating, developing and sharing the digital information and
solving issues in the workplace anywhere in the world.in todays technological environment it is
very important to understand the importance of digital skills as it masters the ability of
understanding and effectively navigating the challenges (Van Deursen, Helsper, and Eynon,
2018). In the report the advancement of business automation technology and the associated
range of digital skills and the “soft’ skills” that are key requirements in demonstrating
progression in terms of personal and professional development will be described in the report.
The report will also demonstrate the current level of digital and soft skills applicable in the
workplace and a professional development will also be evaluated in the report that will facilitate
an increased level of digital skill attainment suitable for effective management and leadership.
MAIN BODY
Examine the digital development of recent years and explain the continuing industrial
advancement and provide an overview of the digital skills sections in demand.
Digital development can be defined the process which helps in describing the use and
application of technology and digital tools in the international development. The digital
technologies are the forefront of the development and it provides a new and innovative
opportunities for the countries to accelerate the economic growth and it also connect the
individuals to services and jobs.in the same way the digital after using the digital technologies
and internet the world has never been the same. The world has become “hyper-connected” and
the individuals are increasingly being driven to live an “always-on” environment. There are lot
of multiple innovative digital development in the recent years and which are using
telecommunications as in 2010 the telecommunication introduce the 4G LTE service, Google
buzz and fibre were released. Companies like Google introduced the expansion of fibre service
in the US cities. Other technologies like IoT and cloud computing is also coming into picture in
these days.one of the biggest development by the help of digital technologies is hybrid
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workplace as after the COVID-19 pandemic situation a virtual work is possible because of this
only (Matt, Hess, and Benlian, 2020).usage of 5G connection makes life easier as individuals are
able to do their personal and professional work more accurately and there is no issue of
buffering and internet connectivity.by the help of digital technologies the world is using the
concept of digital banking and can do online payments , cashless payment transaction , online
loan application and approvals and many more services. There are some other digital
developments also like introduction of using block chain, data protection and security, using
artificial Intelligence in the business organizations and this provides a better customer support
experience and an effective workplace.similaryly there are many benefits of using the digital
technology is every aspect as it saves the cots as well as time. One of the best solution which
everyone is using in today’s environment is doing shopping online, ordering food online and the
products will be delivered at the doorsteps of the individuals and this becomes possible only by
the help of digitalization. This is also providing a flexibility in doing online transactions and
paying the bills at any time and from where now there is no need to standing in a queue for
paying the bills.by using the digital technologies in day to day life the individuals can keep
themselves up to date according to the latest trends and technologies.one can keep in touch with
family members and relatives by doing messages on whatsaap , face book and many more social
platforms , by sending emails or by doing video conferencing calls and this will also help in
building good relationships among them.one of the biggest benefit the individuals can have by
using the digital skills is they can find their jobs on the online portal and can apply on the same
for employment. In these days these job portals becomes a very good source for the one who are
in need of job and this is possible because of digital technologies (Kotane, Znotina, and
Hushko,2019).
All these developments have been adopted in the past few years by the industries
but now also there are some advancements which are taking place by the organizations for better
growth and development in the future prospective. The companies are introducing the concept in
which they will use the robotic process automation which is used for automating jobs. Robotic
process automation is the process in which the software is used for automating the business
process like interpreting applications, processing transactions, dealing with the relevant data and
replying to the emails. Another industrial advancement in terms of digital technologies is using
quantum computing which is basically a form of computing that provides a advantage of
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quantum phenomenon like superposition and quantum entanglement. Virtual reality and
augmented reality helps in immersing the user in an environment and also enhances the
environment as well. This technology is using in the gaming zone and also used for providing
training session to the Navy, army and coast guard ship captions and the name of the software
used is Virtual ship (Elder, and et.al, 2021). Companies are using the digital technologies in
marking attendance and tracking the past records of the employees so as to reward them
according to their performance level. Some of the banks are introducing some virtual banking
systems in which the customers need not to come to the banks for doing the operational work
and this account will work for them as a UPI or Paytm.
The digital skills are more in demand these days because this makes the job
easier.in this competitive environment it becomes very difficult for the individuals to do the
manual work so by the help of digital skills one can do the jobs from a hybrid environment.in
the future jobs every department will be technology oriented and will required a good who will
be very sound in technologies.by the help of digital skills the entrepreneurs or the employees can
help in increasing the business forward and therefore the employees also feel more motivated
and confident in their workplace. Earlier the jobs which are carried out by the individuals
manually are now replaced by the automation software. By having the good digital skills it
reduces the risk of doing work as their work is done by automated systems (Mazurchenko,
Zelenka, and Maršíková, 2022). The demand of digital skills is providing many benefits to the
workplace which helps in streamlining the working processes which helps the employees and
employer in doing the work in less time and the employees are freed up in focusing their efforts
on higher value work. There are many types of digital skills that are in demand and required in
the organizations for better growth and development like email and instant messaging , word
processing , social media for business , web based research and problem solving , data entry an
handling and behaving safety and legally online. The companies are using the digital
technologies in their day to day operation work like using artificial intelligence, Block chain,
cloud computing and Internet of things (IoT).By using these systems in the organization the
companies are able to makes the job easier and smooth.
Many companies are using the digital technologies in making
transformations in their working culture and by this they can have better outcomes for their
organizations. Some of the companies which are using the concepts of digital technologies in
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their daily operational activities which makes the outcome more effective and efficient. Brick by
Brick –Lego is using the digital transformation by introducing many new systems like a new
enterprise systems, crowd sourced product design and strong licensing model for media
endeavours. The next company is delivery by data – DHL and this company is using the digital
technologies after the pandemic situation (Van Deursen, and Van Dijk, 2019). The company
used some cases for digitalization and which are advanced quality control centre, improved
customer experience through digitization. Smart cities are also the main highpoints of using the
digital technologies and giving an innovative transformation.so these are some of the examples
of companies using the digital skills in their organizations for improving the overall performance
as well as their productivity.
Reflect on own management and leadership skills using a range of models and develop and
justify a personal development plan that will facilitate an increased level of effective
management and leadership.
Digital skills are very important in today’s competitive environment and it is step towards
learning various new and innovative things. The digital skills helps in improving the confidence
of using the technology in working, learning and daily life.in almost every organization it
becomes very essential to have a good knowledge of digital technologies like working as a
admin also requires a good knowledge of computer as well as working as a developer also
require an adequate knowledge of technologies.it also helps in making good leadership and
management skills and enhance the quality and performance of the employee. Not only
Information technologies industries requires the digital skills but also the digitalization is
expanding very frequently in almost every sector as this is making the wok more accurate and
smooth(Chaker,2020). Soft skills and digital skills are both very important for working in the
organization as it provide numerous benefits to the employees as well as to the organization also.
Being working in a company I also feel that there are many features and benefits of
digitalization in the workplace and some of them are as follows:
 By using the digital skills in the workplace this increases the flexibility in their working
schedule and working environment as well. With the help of digital tools like mobile
intranet software the employees can connect each other from anywhere by having a less
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focus on the strict schedules. This provides me the flexibility of doing work and give a
chance of maintaining a good work life balance.
 In today’s technological environment sharing the documents on Google docs and
community calendars it becomes very simple and basic for me to collaborate in real time
for getting the projects done at the real time. These digital skills supports the employees
in streamlining the work process and allows us to do the work in less time than it as
required earlier.Beacuse of this the productivity and efficiency of the employees are
increasing in a very rapid manner.
 The digital skills and soft skills in the work place also enhanced my communication as
well innovation skills as by motivating the two way communication between the lower
lever and high level team members a good digital working culture provides a free
flowing way of exchanging the opinions within the company (Van Laar, and et.al, 2018).
A social intranet like Lumapps has been designed for sharing the ideas between the
employees using the tools like interactive surveys which helps everyone to share their
ideas and raise their voice.
 It also improve my satisfaction level of working in a digital workplace as I can connect
with the team members, there were so many opportunities to network with the peers and
can share our opinions and views .this allows me to express my views and ideas freely
and I also feel valued and this also makes the employee happiness and engagement.
 One of the biggest achievement for the organization as well as for the employees is
retaining the employees so by using the digital skills within the organization. By
employee retention the companies will able to lower the turnover rate and the employees
also feel motivated as it is easier for them to working in the same culture and knowing
the facts more accurately.
Similarly the professional development place within the organization helps in documenting the
goals, required skills and competitive development. It is basically a document that helps in
providing a framework for connecting with a variety of PD experiences to one another and also
to the common core of specialised and information values for emerging professionally (Pirzada,
and Khan,2019). There are many examples of professional development plan within the
organization like taking proper participation in the professional companies, enrolment in the
induction and training orientations, research, improving the job performance and many more.
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The individual professional plan helps in documenting the development of oneself by
assessment an reflection and it is one of the most greatest tool that can be used for identifying,
organizing and planning for the other level for making a professional individual plan there are
six steps that have to be followed by everyone in order to increased level of digital skill
attainment suitable for effective management and leadership in the contemporary workplace.
 The first step is to assess yourself as it is very important to do self-assessment and in this
step the individual have to analyze the personal and professional interest, plan, dreams
and current knowledge and skills one have in them. In this step the individuals will able
able to understand themselves that who they are and what are the skills they have and
what they want in their life and career (Sparks, and Hirsh, 2020).
 The second step in making the professional development plan is to set your goals.at first
it the skills and current position has been evaluate and then the goals has been setting this
step it important to divide the main goal into three categories which are long term goals,
short term goals and middle term goals. The long term goals can be month or year into
the future , the middle term goals can be from a range of week to a couple of months and
the short term goals can range from couple of days to the couple of weeks.
 After this the next step is to set an develop the strategies as it is require to have an action
plan for achieving success and growth in the workplace. For creating a good and
innovative strategy it is important to ask yourself how much you can advance your
competencies, learn new abilities or get that promotion you have been watching since
ages.
 The fourth step is to gather the resources like by seminars or workshops that can improve
the skills set, learning and development resources that can help in improving the
knowledge, professional network that helps in connecting with the new mentors and by
social media platforms like LinkedIn where one can connect with the team virtually.
 Next one is to create a timeline and it is very important to set a deadline for any work as
it is the “T” in the SMART goal.it helps in completing the work in given time period and
makes the system of the organization more punctual(Dochy, and et.al, 2018).
 The last step is to track your progress as by the help of SMART goals defined it becomes
very simple to track the progress and assess where you stand in the organization. The
professional development plan is basically a linear plan and by tracking one will get to
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know what to change and what to update in order to make a good and effective
professional development plan.
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CONCLUSION
From the report it has been understood that learning digit skills in the workplace is very essential
in this technological world as this can helps in improving the confidence level of using the
technology for work, learning and personal life. Digital skills have been very useful for
nowadays society, professional life and also for creating various opportunities in multiple fields.
The report have described the digital development of recent years and the continuing industrial
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advancement as well as provide an overview of the digital skills sections in demand by the help
of some examples. The report also elaborated the current levels of digital and soft skills
applicable to the workplace and have also describe the steps involved in developing the
professional development plan.
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REFERENCES
Books and references
Van Deursen, A.J.A.M., Helsper, E.J. and Eynon, R., 2018. Measuring digital skills. From
digital skills to tangible outcomes project report.
Kotane, I., Znotina, D. and Hushko, S., 2019. Assessment of trends in the application of digital
marketing. Scientific Journal of Polonia University, 33(2), pp.28-35.
Matt, C., Hess, T. and Benlian, A., 2020. Digital transformation strategies. Business &
information systems engineering, 57(5), pp.339-343.
Elder, A., and et.al, 2021. The role of artificial intelligence in cosmetic dermatology—current,
upcoming, and future trends. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 20(1), pp.48-52.
Mazurchenko, A., Zelenka, M. and Maršíková, K., 2022. DEMAND FOR
EMPLOYEES’DIGITAL SKILLS IN THE CONTEXT OF BANKING 4.0. E+ M Ekonomie a
Management, 25(2), pp.41-58.
Van Deursen, A.J. and Van Dijk, J.A., 2019. Digital skills: Unlocking the information society.
Springer.
Chaker, R., 2020. Digital skills are predictors of professional social capital through workplace
and social recognition. Italian Journal of Sociology of Education, 12(2).
Van Laar, E., and et.al, 2018. The relation between 21st-century skills and digital skills: A
systematic literature review. Computers in human behavior, 72, pp.577-588.
Pirzada, K. and Khan, F., 2019. Measuring relationship between digital skills and
employability. European Journal of Business and Management, 5(24).
Sparks, D. and Hirsh, S., 2020. A national plan for improving professional development.
Dochy, F., and et.al, 2018. Theories of learning for the workplace: Building blocks for training
and professional development programs. Routledge.
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