LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional network, announced that it has crossed 100 million members in India. With a 56% growth in its member base over the last 3 years, India has solidified its position as the second largest market for LinkedIn globally. The largest share of members in India are from software & IT, followed by manufacturing, corporate services (Consulting, Accounting, and HR), finance, and education industries. This steady surge in membership shows how LinkedIn has become an essential platform for professionals in India to connect, learn, grow, and get hired over the course of their careers.
Ashutosh Gupta, India Country Manager, LinkedIn said, “These recent years have drastically changed the way we work. It is heartening, and gratifying, to see our 100 million member community in India using the platform extensively for more than jobs now – they are over-indexing on networking, messaging, and learning more than any other region globally. It helps them find the right opportunities, connect with peers and mentors, and acquire new skills to advance their careers. With new tech advancements and newer digital opportunities on the horizon, it’s inspiring to see our country being fully engaged in skilling and upskilling, with members in India consuming twice as many learning hours on the platform when compared to members in the U.S. As we look to welcome the next 100 million professionals, we aim to be a true partner in the lives of professionals as India continues to build a skills-first labor market.”
To further help businesses and professionals adopt a skills-first approach to better navigate uncertainty, LinkedIn has launched the top 10 most in-demand skills required by companies; and the Workplace Learning report to reveal the priorities of L&D leaders in India. Professionals are motivated to learn as skilling proves key to hiring, developing, and retaining talent.
As jobs and career paths become increasingly non-linear, companies in India are adopting a skills-first approach to hiring with more than 50% of India’s recruiters on LinkedIn explicitly using skills data to fill their roles, which is higher than the global average of 45%.
In 2022 alone, professionals in India spent 4.6 million hours learning on the platform, which is nearly 2x the learning hours spent on LinkedIn in the U.S. According to LinkedIn’s Workplace Learning Report, ‘upskilling employees’ is the top priority for India’s L&D leaders, and ‘providing learning opportunities’ is their top solution for improving retention.
This sharpened focus on skilling comes at a time when 85% of L&D leaders agree that learner engagement has increased in their companies. Shedding light on the reason for this surge, findings show that the number one motivation for employees to learn is to progress towards their career goals.
Despite tough macroeconomic conditions, learning in-demand skills will be critical for professionals to become more employable in any job market and reach their career goals in 2023. This year’s list of LinkedIn’s top 10 most in-demand skills in India features a blend of business and marketing skills such as Management (#1), Communication (#4), and Sales (#10); and tech skills such as Software Development (#2), SQL (#3), and Java (#5). Leadership (#6) and Analytical Skills (#8) also feature on the list as important soft skills needed across various job functions.
