The new year offers many opportunities to take your career to new heights as work culture evolves. Adaptability is always in demand, and showing a willingness to develop your skills is crucial to climbing the career ladder. If you want to make 2025 your year, start by looking into these highly sought-after skills.
As we’ve done in previous years, we’ll look at what experts believe to be the most desirable skills to adorn your resume in 2025.
AI and machine learning
It’s no surprise to see AI mentioned again. While we’re still learning the best ways to utilize artificial intelligence and it’s had no small share of controversies, it’s a constantly evolving technology with new roles emerging every day. PwC found the need for AI skills is 3.5 times greater than any other skill on the market.
With the sheer amount of new and evolving jobs needing to adapt to AI, it’s a disservice to not jump on the train. Skill Up says that even just learning how to use AI to automate time-consuming tasks can free up your time to focus on other endeavors. Research the ways your industry is using AI and start learning!
“In this case, you can set clear team goals for AI skills development, such as completing a course or workshop within a certain time, for example, to reinforce these skills on a daily basis.” –Alejandro Oses, Forbes
Data analysis
In sports, we’re seeing more teams hire analytics specialists to help coaches make data-driven calls rather than blindly trusting their gut, and businesses are taking the same approach. Businesses can use data to make the right decisions, but not all data is equally important or relevant. It requires a unique skill set to sift through the data and find what can actually help. This leads to data analysis becoming a top skill.
Forbes’ Jack Kelly says that knowing how to ensure data is relevant and creating data-based strategies will help organizations stay afloat. AI is a piece of this puzzle as well, enhancing the information and creating visualizations of relevant data.
“As businesses across industries increasingly rely on data to make informed decisions, they require more employees with the ability to collect, interpret, and share data that can solve their business problems.” –Coursera
Interpersonal skills
Even with tech evolving at unprecedented rates, the human element is still at the core of the workplace. With a wider range of business networking, complicated departments, and flexible working conditions, knowing how to balance wildly different people and skill sets is more important than ever.
We highlighted project management as one of last year’s top skills, and it’s still a valuable one for 2025. But LinkedIn vice president Aneesh Raman says learning how to communicate better and build relationships goes a long way. To help workers develop these skills, companies can promote clear communication lines with workers and practice active listening.
Emotional intelligence
One interpersonal skill of particular note in this evolving technological world is the need for emotional intelligence. It’s easy to feel disassociated with machines doing so many tasks and teams often being spread far apart. Knowing how to form connections, inspire team members, and help different branches work together is not only good for profitability but for morale as well.
Author Bernard Marr says that a large component of this is understanding empathy and trust. People do better work if they feel like a valued part of the team, rather than just another ghost in the machine. Being able to form connections and understand nonverbal cues remotely will create high-functioning teams able to weather difficult projects.
“In today’s collaborative workplaces, effective communication is more than a soft skill—it’s a strategic advantage. This shift has led to a rising demand for professionals skilled in active listening. Essential capabilities such as delivering clear and concise messages, interpreting non-verbal cues, and adapting communication styles to various audiences.” –Randstad
Flexibility
The world is constantly evolving, and it won’t be slowing down in 2025. That doesn’t just apply to technology. The world learned some tough lessons during the pandemic, and flexibility and adaptability emerged as priceless skills. Whether it’s getting used to these new technologies, adapting to a remote work team, or finding new ways of doing business, the ability to be flexible and resilient will help you embrace change and come out stronger.
Millennial and Gen Z leaders especially are looking at versatile soft skills as a metric for success. Find ways to show how you overcame obstacles and emerge better for it on your resume and in your interviews. Highlight the ways you solve problems and manage teams despite challenges in your path.
Wrap up
Featuring a mix of both soft skills and industry-leading hard skills, these are just a few of the top skills employers are looking for in 2025. With a new generation of workers taking leadership positions, always-evolving technology developments, and the very idea of what a workplace is being in flux at play, no matter what industry you’re in, developing these skills will pay off.
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