Industries that are Seeking Coding Skills in 2020

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The push for coding skills across industries knows no bounds. Every industry from agriculture to zoology is becoming more digital with each passing year. If that trend continues, and it most likely will, 2020 will be a wild year for coders!

That said, there are a few industries in which the push for coding skills is likely to be a little tougher. In any industry, coding skills are a major resume-booster. But when it comes to these industries, coding skills are a must-have.

Is There a “Right Age” to Learn Code?
Whether you’re reading this article for tips on how to prepare your six-year-old for the future or for help making a career shift in your mid fifties, coding can help. There is no “right age” to learn code because there is no “right age” to improve yourself.

People often worry that their mentees, students, or children are “too young to code,” but that’s another common misconception. In reality, thanks to the higher levels of neuroplasticity in younger brains, the younger the student the better!

With a wide variety of coding games for kids, Roblox coding, and software development games to choose from, no age is too young for code.

Personal Finances and Banking
The financial sector has been hit primarily hard by the rise of coding skills across industries, but not in the way that you might think. With the rise of cryptocurrencies, such as BitCoin, it’s easy to believe that the financial sector is on the way out. That could not possibly be less true!

In fact, the opposite is the case. Because of the very same technological innovations that made BitCoin possible, among others, personal finances and banking have begun to take on an entirely new look. A recent study shows that nearly 40% of Americans haven’t entered a physical bank within 6 months. Instead, these hundreds of thousands of people rely on digital software to meet their banking needs. That means code is more important to these industries than ever before.

Entertainment
Code has always been the cornerstone of video games. How, then, is it going to be any more important in 2020 than it has been before? To put it simply, the video game industry is expected to reach a worth of over $90 billion by 2020, up more than 14% from 2017.

As the video game industry continues to grow, so too do the film, media, television, and other categories within the entertainment industry. Just about anywhere you look, new websites are popping up, new software is being created, and more great inventions area always just around the corner.

With a firm understanding of code, you can improve your odds of breaking through into the entertainment industry and finding successful, fulfilling employment.

(Advanced) Manufacturing
Manufacturing deals with the creation of physical products. That means just about everything from battleships to candy wrappers. Since it’s such a physical industry, many people wrongly believe that coding skills have no part to play.

In reality, the field of advanced manufacturing--that is, the use of high-tech devices, robotics, and automation to improve the manufacturing process--is the fastest-growing tech industry in the world and is almost entirely reliant on a firm foundation written in code.

In order to create robotic devices or automated machines, you need to be able to program those devices and machines. Otherwise, they’re still going to rely on a manual operator. So, by boosting your proficiency with code, you can also boost your proficiency with the advanced manufacturing process.

Data and Analytics
The days of punching in, manually entering data into a system for eight hours, and then punching out are over. Nowadays, data analysts employ high-tech algorithms and advanced computer systems to do that work in a matter of seconds.

In order to make that happen, you need to know how to code. In fact, it is a widely agreed-upon fact that coding skills are the number one skills important to data analysts in today’s world. As big data continues to grow at about a 77.5% five-year average rate, you can expect the industry’s reliance on code to increase even further in 2020.

Software Development
This one is obvious. Since software literally is code, it makes logical sense to say that code will be important to the profession. But, if it’s so obvious, why is it listed in this article? Because there will be more than one million unfulfilled programming jobs by 2020.

Because of the massive growth rates that the tech industry has seen over the past few years, the supply of labor simply cannot keep up with the demand. Fortunately, that makes it a seller’s market. Since employees “sell” labor, that means you could find yourself in hot demand for software development jobs.

Provided, of course, that you have a solid understanding of how to read, write, and breathe code.

Conclusion
If you take the time to master coding skills in at least (but, preferably, more than) one programming language, you can boost your employment prospects in just about any industry.

Whether you’re a student looking to increase your chances of finding a job after high school or a long-time professional looking to secure a promotion/raise, you’re going to want to learn how to code.

If, on top of that, you happen to work in one of these five industries, the need for coding skills is even more dire. Although it can be challenging, the financial benefits will speak for themselves in the long run. “The proof is in the pudding,” they say. In this case, the proof is in the dough!

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