Pandemic Spurs Demand For Online Learning And Technology Credentials In India

* Trailhead, Salesforce’s online learning platform, witnesses 29% increase in badges earned in India from March 2020 - March 2021

On World Youth Skills Day, Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), the global leader in CRM, released insights from its online learning platform, Trailhead, indicating strong growth and demand for digital learning in India in the last 12 months. Trailhead witnessed a 29% increase in the number of badges earned from March 2020 - March 2021, in India and a 26% increase across APAC (Australia, India, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines). Marketers (92%) and Administrators (72%) saw the highest increase in job-related skills for India. Globally, AI related certifications/badges saw an increase of 148% followed by blockchain related certifications/ badges at 54% between March 2020 - March 2021.

The Global impact of the pandemic has led businesses of every size to acceleyed in India believe that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for digitalerate the pace of digital adoption across industries. In a recent study commissioned by Salesforce and YouGov, titled ‘The Digital Skills Report’, nine in ten people surveyed in India believe that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for digital skills in their organisation. Additionally, 92% of managers surveyed from India, said that their organisation has plans in place to fill their ‘digital skills gap’.

Trailhead is Salesforce’s free online learning platform that helps anyone skill up for jobs in the Salesforce ecosystem. With Trailhead, anyone can learn in-demand skills, earn resume-worthy credentials, and connect with a community for mentorship and employment opportunities. Trailhead has partnered with more than 700 universities and colleges worldwide to teach Salesforce skills that are important in the digital workforce. In India, Salesforce has ongoing partnerships with the ICT Academy, NASSCOM, National Skill Development Corporation and other universities and industry bodies. L&T Realty, the real estate development arm of engineering and construction firm Larsen & Toubro, used the lockdown to empower its teams to enhance their CRM knowledge and skills through Salesforce’s learning platform. About 39 employees in the customer experience team spent 900+ hours acquiring new credentials and skills to take their careers to the next level of success, and unlock new opportunities beyond COVID-19 in addition to enhancing their knowledge of CRM, marketing, and sales serving customers better.

Comments on the news:

Sanket Atal, Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Sites (India), Salesforce India said, “COVID-19 has rapidly accelerated our planet’s migration to digital. All countries are going to be more impacted by the digital skills gap as there is a supply-demand mismatch. The decisions companies make now to solve the digital skills gap will echo for a generation. This is a pivotal moment - a unique opportunity for companies to add future value to their business and drive equity and inclusion.”

About Salesforce Salesforce is the global leader in Customer Relationship Management (CRM), bringing companies closer to their customers in the digital age. Founded in 1999, Salesforce enables companies of every size and industry to take advantage of powerful technologies—cloud, mobile, social, internet of things, artificial intelligence, voice and blockchain—to create a 360° view of their customers. For more information about Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), visit: www.salesforce.com.

About World Youth Skills Day

In 2014, The United Nations General Assembly declared 15 July as ‘World Youth Skills Day’, to celebrate the strategic importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship. This year the theme is particularly around ‘Reimagining Youth Skills in a post pandemic world'.