FEATURE
Future of work: Digital skills in the
food industry
Identifying the specific skills needed most
Barb Renner, Kimberly Betts, Justin Cook, and Jagadish Upadhyaya
A DELOITTE SERIES ON THE FUTURE OF WORK IN THE FOOD INDUSTRYFuture of work: Digital skills in the food industry
Digitization of grocers and product suppliers means new skills are needed
for success.
ECHNOLOGY MAY NOT be the only thing
METHODOLOGY
unlocking new possibilities for the future of
work, but it is a major driver. The foodThis study analyzes almost six years
T (2016–2021 through August) of job-
industry has seen its effect on work through
postings data for top 50 food retailers
deployments that enable new forms of e-commerce,
and product suppliers (by US revenue)2
automate pick-and-pack operations, manage
found in the Burning Glass Technologies
supply chains, forecast production needs, and
job posting database.3 These companies
more. In the process of digital transformation, the
combined represent approximately 75%
industry is rearchitecting work to help enable of the total workforce in the US food
humans and technology to collaborate more closely industry. The study was also informed by
and effectively. As one might expect, this requiresapproximately 20 interviews with retail
new kinds of skills—different from the ones and consumer products executives and
traditionally sought by the industry. This is now Deloitte practitioners.
true for frontline workers as well as for the other
employees needed to build, implement, and run
the technology systems transforming the industryto be the ones most likely to increase in value over
in the first place.the next three years, even for the non-managerial,
frontline workforce. This was true for product
suppliers (95%) and food retailers (92%) alike.
The shift to digital skills This shift to digital skills is also reflected in
increased job postings requiring digital skills,
Deloitte and FMI-The Food Industry Association which is especially evident for food retailers
(FMI) surveyed more than 150 US-based(figure 1). The rapid increase in such job postings
executives at consumer packaged goods, foodby food retailers that began in 2018 appears to
manufacturing, and processing companies, as wellhave returned with vigor in 2021, despite a pause
as grocers and other food retailers.1 Out of the 12 during the first year of the pandemic.
skill types assessed, “digital skills” were indicated
2 Future of work: Digital skills in the food industry
FIGURE 1
The food industry is posting more jobs that require digital skills
Food retailersProduct suppliers
40,000
30,000
20,000~ 90%
increase in two
years for food retailers
10,000
20162017 20182019 20202021F
Note: The 2021 forecasts are based on data through August of 2021.
Source: Based on Deloitte’s analysis of Burning Glass Technologies API data for the top 50 food retailers and 50 product
suppliers by revenue.
Deloitte Insights | deloitte/insights
A top-level data view reflects a more significant
Which digital skills are in transformation underway among food retailers
demand?than product suppliers. But that’s not because
product suppliers are behind. In fact, the
A major problem with discussions of digital skills is manufacturers and food processors that constitute
that they rarely address a key question: “Which product supplier brands have long deployed a
digital skills?” Through analysis of client projects significant number of digital skills. For example, in
across multiple industries, Deloitte has identified a 2016, only about 7% of food retail postings in the
core set of analytics, automation, and artificialdataset required AAA skills compared to about
intelligence skills—the “AAA skill set”—believed to 20% of supplier postings. Supplier postings reflect
be key to meeting the technology needs of the work a steady march in growing their digital skills base
in the future. This skill taxonomy is organized into in relatively the same proportions as past years. It
foundational and advanced skills and further intois an indication that the basics of the business have
advanced skill categories. Applied to the food not changed as significantly.
industry, the AAA skill set can both identify and
analyze relevant job postings to provide unique Food retailers, however, show a significant change
insights into the specific digital skills likely most in both volume and kind of advanced digital
needed by food retailers and suppliers (figures 2skills sought.
and 3). This approach also captures digital skills
o Digital delivery: These are the skills needed
turning up in less expected pockets of companies—
to build applications for end-users, both
like operations, human resources, marketing, or
external and internal, such as e-commerce and
finance functions—in addition to traditional employee scheduling. Food retailers started
IT departments.ramping postings for these skills aggressively in
2018 and demand has continued to grow.
3Future of work: Digital skills in the food industry
FIGURE 2
Prominent skill clusters in food industry job postings requiring AAA advanced skills
Digital delivery Data science Data engineering Automation and robotics
AAA advanced job postings from food retailers (2016–2021)
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 F
AAA advanced job postings from product suppliers (2016–2021)
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 F
FIGURE 3
Top five skills demanded by the industry for each advanced skill cluster
AAA advanced skill clusters
Digital delivery Data science Data engineering Automation & robotics
o Web developmento Mathematical o Data wranglingo Robotics
o User interface design modelingo Cloud computingo Automated testing
o Data visualization o Big data anlytics o Cloud securityo Automation
o Automated testing o AI and machine architecture o Computer-aided
techniqueslearning o Data miningmanufacturing
o Application o Web analytics o Data techniqueso Industrial automation
programming o Simulation
interface
Note: The 2021 forecasts are based on data through August of 2021.
Source: Based on Deloitte’s analysis of Burning Glass Technologies API data for the top 50 food retailers and 50 product
suppliers by revenue.
4 Future of work: Digital skills in the food industry
o Data engineering: These skills are datasuch as scrum, to build applications centered on
infrastructure related. Job postings for dataexternal and internal customers, both of whom are
engineering grew dramatically in 2018. more digitally savvy and have higher expectations
However, they leveled off subsequently, likelyfor what applications should deliver. For example,
an indication that the data infrastructure wasstore associates are being provided applications for
now largely in place.facilitating pick-and-pack shopping, interacting
o Data science: Demand for these skills didn’twith customers through text, taking mini training
spike until 2019, after the data infrastructure courses, and managing their schedules.
was in place to support their work. Demand
remains exceptionally high among food In part because they will use these applications, job
retailers, on par with digital delivery.postings for frontline employees are also now
frequently listing a requirement for some form of
o Automation: These skills are used for both
robotic and more software- or process-based digital skills. For example, the analysis for retail
automation. While the need for these skills isrevealed that one in four job postings for cashiers
ramping up steadily, job postings do not reflect as well as retail store associates, plus three in fo