LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional network, and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) will today launch Greater Creators, a new report containing a detailed snapshot of skills and employment in the Greater Manchester region.
The report marks the first time UK local government will use LinkedIn data to inform digital training and skills provision in education and workplaces.
The findings show Greater Manchester is an economic hub and centre for creative talent, and provide new insights into the impact on skills in the area:
The top three skillsets Manchester is winning from London are digital marketing, user interface design, TV and video production while Game development, theatre and drama, writing and publishing, social media marketing and TV and video production are among the top skills flowing into the area overall
Camera operation was the skill most likely to get people hired in the 12 months to August 2015 and 24,000 LinkedIn members moved to the region in the same period
Commenting on Greater Creators, Tony Lloyd, Interim Mayor of Greater Manchester said: “Greater Manchester is delighted to work with LinkedIn to explore how we use their expertise and knowledge to help us improve our skills offer and boost the city-region’s economy. As the first European region to establish this kind of partnership Greater Manchester is outlining its ambition to lead the UK in skills provision. We are also establishing ourselves as a leading and innovative global city in the use of data to shape policy and improve lives.”
Councillor Sean Anstee, Greater Manchester lead for Skills, Employment & Worklessness commented: “Our partnership with LinkedIn has enabled us to access a wealth of workforce data which will help us to improve our education and skills offer to meet the future needs of Greater Manchester businesses and residents. The report is incredibly positive and helps us to highlight the strength of the city-region’s creative, tech and digital sector and our ability to attract talent and roles from across the North and London. We will use the findings to inform a Greater Manchester Digital Skills Action Plan to improve digital training and skills provision within schools, higher education and in workplaces across the region.”
The report is the first result of the #ProjectManchester campaign in 2015, a joint effort between LinkedIn and the GMCA to help the Authority understand, and plan, for its skills gaps as it forecasts 110,000 new jobs in the next decade. The initiative forms part of LinkedIn’s global Economic Graph initiative to map the global economy.
To understand the labour market dynamic, LinkedIn examined the aggregated profile information of its 614,000 members within Greater Manchester, looking specifically at four key factors: workforce and skills, hiring, migration, and education.
