The Essential

Skills Playbook
Prepare your organization
for digital transformation
Table of contents

I. Foreword 3

II. The key to organizational success: business, tech, and data science skills 4

III. The Essential Skills Map for digital transformation 6

IV Industry Skill Maps 9

Finance 10

Telecommunication 12

Tech 14

Professional services 16

Manufacturing 18

V. Next steps 20
 3

Foreword
We are amidst a massive technological transformation that’s ushering fundamental changes in the
ways we live, work, and play. Klaus Schwab of the World Economic Forum calls this transformation the
Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) in which our physical, digital, and biological worlds interconnect with
1
new technologies . Think: artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT), and
3D printing, to name a few. Where animals, steam, and electricity forged previous revolutions, this one
runs on data. And unlike the revolutions of yesteryear, there’s no end date to the power of data, as it’ll
continue to shape organizations today, tomorrow, and into the future.

Businesses around the world are starting to take notice, too. Spending on the enablement of digital
2
transformation (DX) is forecast to approach $2 trillion by 2023 . However, many organizations struggle
with knowing where to find the skills necessary to not only survive, but to thrive in today’s digital
3
landscape. In fact, PwC’s Talent Trends 2019 CEO survey report found that 79% of CEOs worry about the
availability of critical skills. Workers themselves echo this sentiment: a recent Gartner survey found that
4
70% of employee respondents report that they do not have mastery of the skills needed for their jobs.
To keep up or, better yet, get ahead, organizations must identify the critical skills their workers need and
map to top development to upskill those in the era of DX.

In this Essential Skills Playbook, our goal is to help organizations identify the capabilities they need
to develop across critical business functions and management—more specifically, skills in finance,
telecommunications, tech, professional services, and manufacturing. The information that follows reflects
our direct learnings from working with over 2,000 companies, governments, and non-profit organizations
to build and execute skill transformation programs.

1. “The Fourth Industrial Revolution, by Klaus Schwab.” World Economic Forum, 2019.
2. “Worldwide Digital Transformation Spending Guide.” IDC
3. PwC. “22nd CEO Survey: Talent Trends 2019.” PwC, 2019.
4. “GartnerThe
HumanEssential Skills
Resources”, 2018 Playbook
Learning &D
3
Prepare your organization for digital transformation
 4

The key to organizational success:

business, tech, and data science skills
With over 46 million learners, 2,000 business
customers, and 200 academic and industry
partners—highly diverse in geography, industry,
and DX readiness—Coursera is in a unique
position to identify the essential skills needed
to remain competitive and help businesses
bridge gaps in their workforce. Now, more than
ever, a varied and interdisciplinary skill set
is an integral part of succeeding amid digital
transformation. When we ask the enterprises
we work with to rank their main priorities for
learning, they express similar needs:
1. Develop future leaders with business
and leadership skills.
2. Create a more agile organization with
technology and digital competencies.
3. Develop technical skills through data
science and engineering learning.
The Essential Skills Playbook
Prepare your organization for digital transformation
The first step to bridging the skills gap and
transitioning toward a proactive operating
workforce is to identify the priority skills in key
functions in the skill areas of business, tech,
and data science. With the depth and breadth
of Coursera’s platform, we do more than
provide learning courses; we use data-driven
insights to help organizations:
a. Identify trending skills in their industry,
job function, or geographical region
b. Recommend what skills your 
organization should invest in, based
on data “We have to ensure we
c. Connect skills to specific courses, continually build the critical
content collections, master programs
and academic degrees on our platform business capabilities that
offered by top universities and
allow us to stay on the
industry partners
forefront of innovation.”
Simon Brown
Chief Learning Officer, Novartis

5
 6

The Essential Skills Map

for digital transformation
Coursera analyzed top skills in five key industries:

Finance

Technology

Telecom

Professional services “The world is changing at the
speed of light. Skills become
Manufacturing obsolete. New jobs appear
every day. With the innovative
They represent a cross-section of the economy and thus offer a snapshot of the skills landscape solution from Coursera, we
for today’s workforce. DX is the driving factor when viewed through the lens of these five
industries—a trend that directly informs the most sought-after skills. now give the power to the
learners, to be able to think
about their future, and be
able to develop what they
need in terms of skills.”
L’Oreal 

The Essential Skills Playbook 7

Prepare your organization for digital transformation
Essential Skills Map
Essential Skills Map for Businesses

Engineering Data Science Product Finance Marketing Managers Sales

Agile Management Business Case Dev. Agile Management Mathematical Finance Digital Marketing Leadership Pricing

Business Leadership Project Planning Product Management Financial Modeling Digital Strategy Change Management Negotiation
Skills
Product Management Leadership Disruptive Innovation Financial Engineering Social Media Design Thinking Business Analytics

Debugging NLP User Experience Design Microsoft Excel VBA Agile Software Dev. Cyber Security Network Software

Tech Algorithms Sentiment Analysis User Research Algorithmic Trading Web Analytics Artificial Intelligence
Networking Hardware

Skills Computer
Cloud Computing Deep Learning Agile Software Dev. Visual Analytics SEO Emerging Tech Troubleshooting

Python Python Big Data Forecasting Big Data Cloud Computing Internet Privacy

Data Machine Learning Tensorflow SQL Business Analytics Marketing Analytics Analytics Data Analysis
Skills
Big Data Machine Learning Data Visualization Data Visualization SQL Data Management Big Data

The Essential Skills Playbook 8

Prepare your organization for digital transformation
 9

Industry Skill Maps

Fintech: The changing face
of finance
Digital transformation is well underway in the
financial arena, with disruptive fintech offerings
rising in consumer demand. These days, many
banks are entirely online, and technologies,
including AI and blockchain, are taking on a
significant role. Financial services companies
are emerging as leaders in data analytics as
their business increasingly revolves around
transforming traditional financial products and
services—insurance, consumer banking, and
investment management—into digital offerings.
According to a PwC report, “Financial Services
Technology 2020 and Beyond: Embracing
Disruption,”5 81% of banking CEOs are
concerned about the speed of technological
change—more than any other industry sector.
Soon, artificially intelligent apps could be
dispensing financial advice—even to high net
worth investors—making investments across
asset classes, geographies, and currencies in
real-time, according to the PwC report. On
a global scale, emerging countries strive for
financial inclusion through the assistance of
microfinancing, microcredit, and a focus on
digital to ward against fraud.
The Essential Skills Playbook
Prepare your organization for digital transformation
Essential skills for finance
To say that data dominates the top skills in the
finance sector would be an understatement,
and this is made clear in the Essential Skills
Map for Finance below. A few items of note:
 A variety of areas, including marketing,
are now data-heavy—from big data and
predictive analytics to digital marketing

 The importance of digital marketing is
indicated by some of the top skills, such
“Our industry is undergoing
as A/B testing
rapid transformation, and
 Several skills are principal to this sector,
cropping up in multiple functions—SQL,
providing direct access to the
Python language, and business analytics best academic knowledge
are among them
will help our employees to
See more top skills and trends in the Essential
drive this transformation and
Skills Map for Finance below.
allow them to manage their
Related courses: Marketing in a Digital World
and Databases and SQL for Data Science by IBM learning curve and enhance
their skill sets.”
5. PwC. “Financial Services Technology 2020 and Beyond: Embracing
Disruption.” PwC, 2019. AXA 
10
Essential Skills Map
Financial Services

Engineering Data Science Product Finance Marketing Managers Sales

Business Operations
Devops Data Manipulation Concept Testing Financial Accounting Tableau Software
Financial Markets
Business Process
Business Statistical Analysis Statistical Analysis
Customer Value
Financial Modeling Predictive Analytics Mapping Pricing
Proposition
Skills Consumer Confidence Cash Flow Forecasting
Blockchains A/B Testing Digital Strategy Financial Markets Digital Marketing
Index

Application Programming Natural Language Microsoft Excel VBA Visual Analytics Decision Tree Game Theory
Business Model Canvas
Interfaces Processing
Tech E-Commerce Database Index
Query Language
Monte Carlo Method Network Theory
Computer Architecture Data Structure
Skills User Experience
Agile Software
Cloud Computing Computer Vision Digital Forensics Development Cryptography Crytography

Python Python Forecasting SQL

Deep Learning Sensitivity Analysis
Programming Programming Financial Data Analysis
Data Sensitivity Analysis
Big Data Big Data Sensitivity Analysis
Machine Learning
Skills Tensorflow Big Data
Statistical
Forecasting
Tensorflow Machine Learning Programming Python Programming Forecasting
SQL

The Essential Skills Playbook 11

Prepare your organization for digital transformation
Telecom: 5G brings new
capabilities and skill needs
Consumer experiences are becoming far
more immersive as the rollout of 5G enables
rich AR and VR. According to Deloitte’s “2018
Global Mobile Consumer Survey: US edition,”6
60% of respondents indicated that 5G is now
“important” to them. Among weekly video
watchers, that jumps to above 80%.
The telecommunications industry is finding
ways to monetize 5G and also investing
in infrastructure to meet ever-expanding
customer requirements. Automation and
consolidation are major industry trends as
are digitally enabling its workers. Security and
privacy remain significant issues —especially
given consumers’ mounting anxiety about
third parties storing and sharing personal
data. Finally, innovation is vital in this sector as
companies have started to acquire or found
their own incubators to stay ahead.
Essential skills for telecom
Similar to other sectors, telecom’s top skills
are data-centric, ranging from big data and
machine learning to data manipulation. A few
other key skills stand out:
The Essential Skills Playbook
Prepare your organization for digital transformation
 Customer value proposition is a leading
skill, likely due to the competition
telecoms are facing
 There is also a focus on marketing to
customers, with top skills ranging from
promotion/marketing communications
to social media analytics and digital
strategy—this as telecoms attempt to
market new technologies like 5G and
established offerings such as pay-TV
 For managers, financial literacy and
money management make the list as
well—perhaps a reflection of the need
to monitor spending
 Internet privacy and security are top
skills, a fact which aligns with consumer
concerns over this issue
See more top skills and trends in the Essential
Skills Map for Telecom below.
Related course: Machine Learning with Python
6. Global Mobile Consumer Survey: US Edition. Deloitte, 23 Oct. 2019.
12
12
Essential Skills Map
Telecom

Engineering Data Science Product Finance Marketing Managers Sales

Digital Strategy
Data Manipulation Data Manipulation Customer Value Financial Statements Marketing Customer Support
Proposition
Business Analytics Statistical Analysis Decision-Making
Social Media Analytics
Financial Literacy
Consensus Decision-
Digital Strategy Making
Skills Promotion
and Marketing
Devops A/B Testing Agile Management Project Management Money Management Compensation Analysis
Communications

Data Structure E-Commerce

Computer Architecture User Story Data Structure Computer Architecture
Internet Security
Tech Debugging
Natural Language
Processing Usability Testing Debugging
Agile Software
Development
Cloud Computing

Skills Application Programming

Application Search Engine
Application Cloud Computing
Interfaces Rapid Prototyping Decision Tree Programming Interfaces
Programming Interfaces Optimization

Machine Learning Python Programming Analytics Deep Learning Internet Privacy

Forecasting Analytical Skills
Data SQL Big Data Financial Data Analysis Tableau Software SQL Software as a Service
Tensorflow
Skills
Statistical Programming Statistical Programming
Big Data R Programming Python Programming Big Data Platform as a Service

The Essential Skills Playbook 13

Prepare your organization for digital transformation
Tech: Fast-moving industry
requires reskilling
Tech is fundamental to everything we do,
regardless of the industry sector. But that
doesn’t mean that a person working in a tech
role or for a technology company is immune to
rapid changes in their field. The reality is that
skill decay is happening more quickly in the
tech space than anywhere else as companies
try to stay at the cutting edge of sophisticated
technologies like AI and cloud computing.
Significant emerging technological trends are
spurring a need for constant innovation. First,
computing and storage costs have reached
all-time lows. Meanwhile, a dramatic increase
in process capabilities is expanding possibilities
across tech. Technology companies are being
forced to think about fundamental issues
such as the way they create platforms, how to
better serve customers, and how to build digital
infrastructure within their companies. Some
are even launching their own unique languages,
like Apple’s Swift, for example. Second, data
science allows for the personalization of
experiences and for analytics to play a central
role in the company’s operations. At the same
time, 5G-related conflicts, net neutrality, and the
rising cost of infrastructures have introduced
new costs and complexities.
The Essential Skills Playbook
Prepare your organization for digital transformation
Essential skills for tech
The challenge is for today’s organizations
is to keep an eye on trends, then prepare
to transform and reskill their workforce.
Several trending skills, among which analytics
dominates, are apparent from our analysis:
 Analytics skills are essential—from
business analytics to statistical analysis.
Analytics made the top skills list in nearly
every function, from engineering and
finance to sales, marketing, and product
 Top skills unique to the tech industry
also make an appearance: Platform as
a Service or PaaS and Infrastructure
as a Service or IaaS (e.g., Amazon Web
Services) both align with the outlined
tech skills below
 Cloud computing ranked as a top skill in
nearly every tech role
See more top skills and trends in the Essential
Skills Map for Tech below.
Related course: Business Metrics for Data-
Driven Companies by Duke University
14
14
Essential Skills Map
Tech Sector

Engineering Data Science Product Finance Marketing Managers Sales

Devops Statistical Analysis User Research Business Analytics Digital Marketing Strategic Planning
Security Management
Business Statistical Analysis Business Analytics
Agile Management
Accounting Marketing Strategy Business Strategy Marketing
Skills Customer Value
Project Management
A/B Testing A/B Testing Proposition Strategic Leadership Business Analytics Sales Strategy

Computer Architecture Artificial Intelligence Agile Software Security Controls Platform as a Service
User Interface Design Query Language
Development
Tech Cloud Computing
Computer Vision Usability Testing Database Design Cloud Computing Internet of Things
User Story
Skills Application Programming Website Wireframe Microsoft Excel Macros
Interfaces Cloud Computing Storyboarding Crytography Cloud Computing

Python Programming SQL Big Data Data Analysis

Python Programming Information Architecture Python Programming

Data Machine Learning Machine Learning Python Programming Forecasting SQL Artificial Neural Network SQL
Skills Statistical Classification Pandas
Data Mining
Predicitive Analytics Predictive Analytics
Data Security
Big Data

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Professional services: Essential skills in
relevant skills in a data- professional services
centric world
This statement hews closely to what Coursera
Digital transformation has significantly affected found to be among the top skills in the
professional services. This stands to reason professional services market:
given that the sector centers on making
informed, risk-managed decisions and providing  Data-related skills including data-based
the right guidance to clients. decision making, statistical analysis,
business analytics, machine learning, big
The challenge for the professional services
firm is to reskill and transform to be relevant
data, and blockchain

in a data- and tech-centric world. A World  Risk management, which is a primary
Economic Forum report, “Professional Services activity and heavily enabled due to the “Learning is increasingly
Approaching a Digital Tipping Point,”7 sums up access of data
the state of the industry: about helping the whole
 AI organization develop the
“AI, data analytics, and machine learning and
platforms are among the most important
 Python programming bold, creative approach to
technologies disrupting the industry. AI supports
professionals to learn, think, and perform problem-solving it needs
better; analytics and machine learning are  Cloud computing
revolutionizing insight generation, and platforms
to meet new challenges
See more top skills and trends in the Essential
are disrupting traditional business models by
Skills Map for Professional Services below
and respond swiftly and
bringing buyers and suppliers together.”
effectively to change.”
Related course: AI for Everyone
Corporate Research Forum
7. “Professional Services: Approaching a Digital Tipping Point.” Digital
Transformation. World Economic Forum.


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Essential Skills Map
Professional Services

Engineering Data Science Product Finance Marketing Managers Sales

Project Management Statistical Analysis Agile Management Financial Modeling Business Analytics Project Management
Business Case Analysis
Business Statistical Analysis Tableau Software
Concept Testing
Risk Management Social Media Marketing Data Manipulation Change Management
Skills Customer Value
Strategic Thinking
Leadership A/B Testing Proposition Financial Markets Digital Marketing Devops

Computer Architecture Natural Language

Artificial Intelligence Blockchain Computer Architecture Blockchain
User Experience Programming
Tech Cloud Computing
Computer Vision User Story Database Index Cloud Computing
Cloud Computing
Types Of Databases
Skills Application Programming
Business Model Canvas Search Engine
Application
Interfaces Cloud Computing Visual Analytics Programming Interfaces Visual Analytics
Optimization

Data-Based Decision
Python Programming Python Programming Big Data Forecasting Big Data Python Programming
Making
Data Machine Learning Text Mining Data Analysis Python Programming Big Data Data Analysis Software
Big Data
Skills
Data Visualization
Machine Learning Big Data SQL Statistics Statistical Analysis Machine Learning
Software

The Essential Skills Playbook 17

Prepare your organization for digital transformation
 once a historically disconnected system is now
Smart manufacturing
smart, digital, and integrates and displays vital
means new tech and new
information such as air quality.
skills
Manufacturing is smarter and more connected
Essential skills for
in the era of DX, and the industry is heavily
manufacturing
investing in this significant transition. According
Our analysis of the skills required for
to an IDC report9, among all industries, the
manufacturing in a digital era fell in line
two investing most in DX in 2019 are discrete
with the latest innovations and emerging
manufacturing ($221.6 billion) and process
technologies. A few to point out:
manufacturing ($124.5 billion).

For the manufacturing sector, the ultimate goal
of moving to digital is to maximize efficiency.
Those who don’t transform run the risk of falling
behind the competition. The primary tactic?
Incorporate leading technologies like AI, data-
driven blockchain, and IoT. An investment in
these strategies helps across the board, from
production to managing inventory through
predictive models for timely production. And
there’s more to come as companies experiment
with new distribution methods such as
automated trucks with the goal to drastically
reduce shipping time.
Manufacturing processes are getting smarter,
which means the products they’re producing
are, too. A new and improved breed of intelligent
products are becoming increasingly connected.
Take, for example, an HVAC unit. What was
 Predictive analytics, data visualization, and
forecasting rank high on the list of data skills
 AI and IoT top the list of computer
science skills
 Top business skills in engineering include
quality control and lean manufacturing
See more top skills and trends in the Essential
Skills Map for Manufacturing below.
Related courses: Digital Transformation by BCG
& University of Virginia, and High Performance
Collaboration: Leadership, Teamwork, and
Negotiation
9. “Worldwide Digital Transformation Spending Guide.” IDC.

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Essential Skills Map
Manufacturing

Engineering Data Science Product Finance Marketing Managers Sales

Six Sigma Project Management Marketing Accounting Consumer Behaviour Sales Strategy
Innovation
Business Quality Control Presentation Project Management Financial Modeling Digital Marketing Business Analytics Performance Analysis
Skills Change Management
Lean Manufacturing A/B Testing Validated Learning Financial Markets Brand Management Sales Prospecting

Artificial Intelligence User Story

Algorithms Design Sprint Web Analytics
Microsoft Excel VBA Security Controls
Tech CAD / CAM
Natural Language Agile Software
Development Microsoft Excel Macro Usability Testing A/B Testing Solver
Processing
Skills V-Model Software Decision Tree Google Cloud Platform
Internet of Things Computer Vision Web Design Microsoft Excel VBA
Development

Python Programming Python Programming Sensitivity Analysis Data Analysis Predictive Analytics Forecasting Analytics
Data Domain-Driven Data
SQL Machine Learning Forecasting Forecasting Data Virtualization Forecasting
Skills Mining

Linear Algebra Time Series Data Mining Data Virtualization Tableau Software Tableau Software Sensitivity Analysis

The Essential Skills Playbook 19

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 20

Next steps
As emerging technologies and big data continue to transform our economies, the theme of a T-shaped workforce
with strengths across business, technology, and data science is clear. Organizations that are intentional and
successful in identifying and measuring where to upskill or reskill their workforce are the ones that will thrive in
this era of digital transformation.

At Coursera for Business, we work with over 2,000 organizations around the world to help drive
skills acquisition for the work that tomorrow needs. We’ve learned that cross-functional
collaboration to deeply understand the skills landscape by function and geography is the first
critical step. Here are four more steps that we’ve found essential in developing learning
transformation plans with our customers.

1. Map learning objectives to business objectives

2. Pick a learning technology that’s well-positioned to drive adoption
3. Understand the skills landscape and your gaps well enough to match the
right skills to the right content for your goals
4. Drive learner adoption with utilization and digital marketing best practices

We recommend this exercise be a collaborative one in which multiple learning

team members prioritize short- and long-term areas to upskill, with a keen
focus on recognizing which teams will drive the most business impact.

As part of our enterprise offering, our Professional Services team can help you design a learning value proposition, map skills to employee
populations, and design engagement strategies that drive true skill acquisition. Get in touch with us today at business@coursera.org.

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About Coursera for Business
Coursera was founded by Daphne Koller and Andrew Ng with a vision of providing life-transforming learning experiences
to anyone, anywhere. It’s now the world’s largest online learning platform for higher education. More than 200 of the
world’s top universities and industry educators partner with Coursera to offer courses, specializations, certificates, and
degrees that empower over 45 million learners around the world to achieve their career goals. 2,000 companies trust
the company’s enterprise platform, Coursera for Business, to transform their talent. Coursera for Government equips
government employees and citizens with in-demand skills to build a competitive workforce.

Top content from the world’s best universities and

companies–all on one platform

Our content partners go through a

rigorous academic review and approval

process. Courses on our platform are

created by the world’s best universities

and companies, and instructors receive

extensive coaching from our in-house

team of online pedagogy experts.

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