Not All Marketing Professionals Agree with ICTC’s In-Demand Jobs

The Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) is well known for its annual report on jobs in demand. As a not-for-profit national centre of expertise for the digital economy, ICTC has become a trusted source for policy advice, forward-thinking, research, and creative capacity-building programs.

Despite being well-researched and detail-oriented, this list ignores the newer and more fluid marketing roles that have emerged in recent years. To work in the digital marketing world and play a role in the continuously evolving digital economy, one must recognize the gap in what ICTC considers to be an employable career.

Digital Marketing, unlike more traditional industries, takes place in the vast and evolving world of the internet. There are countless roles, duties, and positions to be filled in this world, with new positions emerging every year. As we've seen with the increased marketing budgets put towards content creators, there is a shift in the roles valued amongst marketing professionals.

According to ICTC, 10 of the most in-demand roles are as follows:

1. Business Analyst
2. Business Development Managers
3. Development of Technology
4. Software Engineer
5. DevOps Engineer
6. Engineering Manager
7. Security Analyst
8. Web Developer
9. Data Analyst
10. Data Scientist

Web coding has existed long enough to be considered part of the ICTC job board, but what about the other valuable roles? There are many highly sought-after digital marketing careers similar to web coding that are not yet included in these annual lists. A few examples would be:

• Digital Ads Manager
• PPC Manager
• SEO Manager
• SEO Consultant
• Marketing Data Analyst
• Social Media Channel Manager
• Digital PR Coordinator

These careers are currently in-demand positions that offer unmeasurable value to many digital marketing companies. These “New Collar” jobs require education and training for specific duties. Unlike traditional Blue Collar or White Collar roles, the term New Collar describes those who are breaking digital barriers in new digital roles. These roles are listed across various job boards and recruiting websites, yet still are not recognized by the Government as official roles.

Canadian Government, as many of us have been witness to, is still working on its own social media strategy. Unless you are New Brunswick (who has set the bar high when it comes to social media integration), there is a need for more fluent digital conversations in governmental institutions. Social media and digital marketing enable more traditional institutions to appeal to a larger audience, generating greater engagement and reach. As governments and organizations aim to reach younger and more digitally literate audiences, they find themselves looking for the very roles mentioned above. It's time to officially recognize the importance of these roles and how they play into today's job market.

Written by Darian Kovacs: Darian Kovacs is the Indigenous founder of B-Corp certified Vancouver-based SEO company Jelly Digital Marketing & PR & digital marketing course Jelly Academy. He brings 15 years of marketing experience and a passion for education, and creativity.