The digital skills redefining employment

Ecuador has 19.22 million devices connected to Google and YouTube. 18.5 million users on TikTok. 87.36 million ChatGPT searches in a single year. An artificial intelligence adoption rate of 19.5% among the economically active population. The connectivity figures have never been so impressive. And yet, something does not add up.

Website visits are falling sharply across every sector. The country’s most popular media outlets declined by an average of 28.22% between January 2025 and April 2026. Primicias, the most visited outlet, lost 41.34% of its traffic. El Universo, the second most visited, fell 47.62%. Banks are not immune: Banco Pichincha lost 26.99% of its web visits; Banco del Pacífico, 32.81%; Banco General Rumiñahui, 53.35%. Universities are recording bounce rates above 56%, as if students were arriving at the door and leaving without entering. Ecuadorian media outlets receive more visits from artificial intelligence applications than from display advertising. And on social media, more than 70% of the content consumed by Ecuadorians has been generated by AI.

At the same time, the PISA 2025 results document a historic decline in reading comprehension. Across OECD countries, the average fell from 470 points in 2018 to 443 in 2025. Young Ecuadorians view 261 TikTok videos a day, but share only 2.28 times and comment 0.38 times per day. They are voracious but passive consumers. They have more information within a click than any previous generation, yet they find it increasingly difficult to understand, connect, evaluate, and apply it.

Meanwhile, the World Economic Forum warns that by 2030, 39% of the core skills required in the labor market will have changed. Ninety-two million jobs will be displaced, but 170 million new ones will be created. The net balance is positive: 78 million jobs. But those jobs will not be for everyone. They will be for people who possess the digital skills that are redefining employment. And here is the paradox that is not being seen clearly enough: Ecuador has won the battle for connectivity, but it is losing the battle for understanding and strategy.

I do not intend to speak only about technology, but about the skills that make technology meaningful. I will also address the competencies that are defining who gets hired, who leads, who innovates, and who gets left behind. In short, I will focus on the digital skills being demanded by companies in Ecuador and around the world. These skills, however, need to be developed, and academia can do its part. If these abilities do not come naturally, they must be cultivated.

What is really happening with employment and digital skills?

For much of the 20th century, the social contract of employment was built on the acquisition of static knowledge and mechanical or procedural skills. A professional was valued for the ability to memorize information, perform repetitive tasks accurately, and specialize in a limited field of knowledge. Technology, when it existed in the workplace, was a support tool, not an active agent reshaping the very nature of tasks. An accountant learned tax rules and applied them for decades with minor variations. A journalist mastered writing techniques and practiced them in a relatively stable media ecosystem. A teacher transmitted knowledge that remained relevant for generations. Employability depended on specialization and stability.

The situation today is radically different. The World Economic Forum projects that by 2030, 39% of the core skills required in the labor market will have changed. This shift is not only quantitative but qualitative: the most in-demand skills are no longer those that can be automated, but those that AI cannot easily replicate. The Future of Jobs Report 2025 identifies technology skills - led by AI and big data, followed by networks and cybersecurity and technological literacy - as growing in importance faster than any other type of skill over the next five years. Emerging jobs reflect the same reconfiguration: Big Data specialists, FinTech engineers, and AI and machine learning specialists are among the fastest-growing roles.

But one very important point is often overlooked: technology skills are not enough on their own. The WEF also notes that human skills - analytical thinking, creativity, resilience, flexibility, and emotional intelligence - are among those expected to grow most in importance. Employers are not looking only for programmers or data analysts; they are looking for professionals who can think critically, communicate effectively, solve complex problems, and adapt to changing contexts.

Future employability will depend on the ability to integrate technical competencies with human skills. And that integration is precisely what defines the digital skills employers are seeking.

The evidence from PISA 2025: more information, less understanding

PISA, which stands for Programme for International Student Assessment, is a global study created by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) that measures the academic performance of 15-year-old students.

The promise of the knowledge society - universal access to information - has revealed a troubling paradox. The PISA 2025 results, published by the OECD, document a historic decline in reading and critical-thinking skills among 15-year-old students, precisely the abilities most needed to operate in an environment dominated by AI. In reading, the average across OECD countries fell from 470 points in 2018 to 443 points in 2025.