The need for digital skills in construction

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The increasing digitalisation of society is also affecting the construction industry, and today many companies find it difficult to recruit the right digital skills. This is what our new analysis of the need for digital skills in construction shows.

In the analysis, we map the demand and supply of digital skills for eight job profiles in the construction industry. The purpose is to investigate whether the digital skills demanded by the construction industry are also offered at Danish educational institutions – both at present and until 2030.

Main conclusions

The advisory stage has the greatest need for digital skills

Employers are demanding digital skills in just under 80% of job listings targeted at building designers and architects. It is especially skills within software for designing and planning construction (e.g. BIM) that are in demand in the Danish labour market.

By contrast, the demand for digital skills in the executive stage is at the lowest. When digital skills are demanded for masons and carpenters, it is often because they have to manage administrative tasks or use a tablet, for instance, to look up plans at the building site.

Signs of recruitment challenges

One in four of the companies surveyed are unable to recruit people with the digital skills needed. That suggests recruitment challenges. But there is no evidence that the recruitment challenges in the digital field are greater than for the construction industry in general. 30% of the companies surveyed even enhance the skill level of employees within the digital field. It is predominantly older employees and engineers that the companies are having to train.

The study is commissioned by the The Danish Transport, Construction and Housing Authority and Realdania.

Links

HBS Economics (2019): "Behovet for digitale kompetencer i byggeriet"

Contact

ANDREAS HØJBJERRE

ANDREAS HØJBJERRE

PARTNER, M.SC. (ECONOMICS)