Demand for workers in Australia with digital skills is soaring, with DevOps professionals leading the way, as Covid-19 has fast-tracked the digitisation of the workforce and intensified a skills gap in the country, reports Smart Company, citing data from Robert Half and Burning Glass Technologies.  The use and maintenance of hardware and software, and development is no longer solely in the realm of the IT department, the research suggests. Accordingly, demand for employees with digital skills is up considerably, and competition is rife. Approximately 82% of respondents said they believe it will be more challenging to find qualified job candidates, compared to pre-pandemic conditions. David Jones, senior managing director of Robert Half in the APAC region, said that the expedited digital revolution has led to new growth opportunities for many businesses. But it’s also changing the roles of their workers. “The skills employers need are not only evolving rapidly but also directly translating into new-look job descriptions and evolving skill sets,” Jones said. When asked about their top staffing concerns for 2021, 18% said their biggest challenge was finding skilled candidates. Another 18% said their biggest challenge was retaining their top performers. Approximately 15% said their biggest concern is reskilling and upskilling employees to meet the changing needs of their business, and 13% were most concerned about their ability to meet employees’ salary expectations.