The US Digital Skills Shortage Is Worse Than We All Thought

The global economy is becoming increasingly digitalized, with analysts at research firm IDC estimating 60 percent of global GDP will be digitalized (meaning largely impacted by the introduction of digital tools) by year-end 2022. But this growing digitalization means that if economies are to remain competitive and productive, they’ll need workforces broadly equipped with the requisite digital skills to power this transformation.

Unfortunately, as the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) writes in its report “Assessing the State of Digital Skills in the U.S. Economy,” domestic and international digital skill assessments show America increasingly faltering and lagging global competitors.

Writing in IndustryWeek, Stephen Ezell explains why manufacturing will bear the brunt of it, along with overall U.S. competitiveness.