Technical skills that are in the greatest demand today are analytics, user experience, automation, IT architecture and Artificial Intelligence, as per new research from Infosys titled "Infosys Talent Radar 2019".

The report looked at two perspectives on the barriers that prevent sufficient demand-supply match of talent -- tangible and intangible barriers to talent transformation. Among the tangible barriers, lack of budget is the biggest barrier, followed by organizational issues, lack of management awareness or support, and inadequate talent management plans.

When it comes to intangible barriers, learnability received short shrift in the research, and it limits the tremendous potential of reskilling as a competitive advantage for companies that embrace learnability. 

Pravin Rao, Chief Operating Officer, Infosys added, “There is not just a talent war -- it's a famine. To succeed, companies must hire, develop, and retain talent better than their competition. As enterprises progress in their digital journeys, the winners will be those who utilize multiple hiring sources and reskill workers in a culture of lifelong learning -- invest in their people, who are the ultimate differentiator in a commoditized world.”

Soft skills that emphasize collaboration are just as important as technical prowess, as per the report. 

For the study, the Infosys Knowledge Institute conducted an online survey that saw participation from more than 1,000 CXOs and other senior-level respondents from companies with revenue greater than $1 Bn. Respondents belonged to multiple industries and were from India, Australia, China, France, Germany, the UK, and the US.

While AI and analytics skills remain in great demand, the irony remains that the country also faces a shortage of talent in these domains. There are over 4000 positions related to Artificial Intelligence (AI) in India that remain vacant due to a shortage of qualified talent at the mid and senior levels, according to a study by Great Learning. Another big challenge being faced by companies when recruiting in India is the lack of talent that is experienced in the AI domain. As per the report, the average AI experience of Indian professionals stands at a mere 3 years, with almost 67% AI professionals in India have joined/transitioned to their current role, only in the last 2 years.