Digital Skills Index: Google releases pioneering research on digital skills in Brazil

O Google launched this Monday (25) the Digital Skills Index (“Digital Skills Index”, in free translation), during a press event at its headquarters in São Paulo. The Index is unprecedented and the result of a collaborative research carried out by the company and the McKinsey & Company.

The study is primeiro No. Brazil and in the Americas and seeks to understand the digitization level of connected Brazilians, addressing which skills are mastered, the difference in maturity between specific groups and what an improvement in the population's digital skills could mean for the country's economy.

The presentation took place in three axes: the Digital Skills Index; Opportunities for a more digital country; and Initiatives to grow digitally.

Digital Skills Index - Digital Skills Index

Maria Helena Marinho, Marketing Insights manager at Google, explained how the research came about. The company realized that there was no reference study on digital skills either in Brazil or in other countries on the American continent.

Wanting to answer questions like “What are the digital skills that Brazilians dominate the most?” and “Where are the training opportunities?”, the survey began in September 2018.

2.477 people were interviewed, aged between 15 and 60, from classes A to D, in 12 states and 28 Brazilian cities. The interviews investigated 5 skills: Access,Use, Safety, digital culture e Creation. Each skill received a score from 0 to 5.

According to the Google, Brazilians have a digital vocation: 70% of the population is connected, 67% has smartphone, and online video consumption grew 135%. Brazil has the 3 º more watch time (time the user spends watching videos) of Youtube of the world and it is ª 4 largest online population.

Access

In the Access skill, the study investigated the knowledge of hardware, software and internet browsing. The score for this skill was 3,5.

Strengths: turn devices on and off, navigation.

Minuses: voice command and software configuration.

Use

In Usage, the study investigated transactions, having an online presence, such as profiles on social networks, good navigation on any website and efficiently searching for content. The skill score was 3,4.

Strengths: messages and search engines.

Minuses: cloud data storage and online transactions (e-commerce).

Safety

Notion of data protection, assessment of online dangers and distinction between personal and shareable information, as well as understanding of appropriate conduct in the digital environment. The note was also 3,4.

Strengths: care of personal data and identification of Phishing.

Minuses: identification of safe websites (and information sources) and threats such as malware.

digital culture

Exploratory vocation, habit of learning through trial and error, constant updating in relation to new technologies, willingness to solve problems and creativity as a fuel to progress. The score in this skill was 3,0.

Strengths: learning by experiencing and monitoring reviews of releases.

Minuses: risk taking in new technologies and trial and error learning culture.

Creation

Creation in different media and presentations from computer programs. Knowledge of outreach tools such as SEO, advanced understanding of analytics and programming. The grade was the lowest among all skills, only 1,8.

Strengths: video editing and presentation creation.

Minuses: Machine Learning and data system.

Overall average: 3,0 (on a scale of 0 to 5).

Brazilians start by learning access skills, then they start to develop skills related to use and safety, from there they start to have a specific culture and only then start to create in the digital environment.

A Scan has a direct impact on the renda and the opportunities to Social development from Brazil. The skill with the greatest capacity to have a positive impact on income (Creation) is the most deficient among Brazilians, as the research shows.

Economic and social impact

A McKinsey & Company is an American business consulting firm and collaborated with research on the analysis of the correlation between income and the digital skills index.

Paula Castilho, partner of Digital McKinsey, division of McKinsey & Company, presented data on income. Research has shown that all competencies combined can have an impact of up to R$380,00 more in monthly income, equivalent to almost 40% of the minimum wage. However, the impact on income differs for each of the 5 competencies, with the Creation the biggest positive differential.

Enabling digital skills transforms workforce participation, reduces unemployment and increases productivity, and can add $ 70 billion ao GPD until 2025 (if there are investments for this).

“With the publication of the research, our expectation is the perception of both the market and the public and academic sectors of the importance of digital training and its impact on the country's economy and development. The results presented reaffirm the relevance of initiatives such as Cresça (from Google)”.

Maria Helena Marinho, Marketing Insights Manager at Google

Initiatives: Grow with Google Program

O Google used as an example to “initiatives to grow digitally”, your program Grow with Google, which started in 2017 and has already served more than 50 thousand people for free. The objective of the program is to train participants' digital skills, aimed at careers or their own businesses.

Em 2019, the program gains new modules for Journalists e Developers. Besides Digital marketing, which addresses concepts such as strategy, websites, sponsored links, social media, digital tools and solutions; womenwill, focused on the personal and professional development of women, such as female leadership, negotiation techniques, personal finance, digital tools and solutions; and training for teachers and educators, about security Online and digital citizenship.

Six cities will receive training from the Google, starting with Brasilia, in day March 27. All information with the dates and locations of the events is available at event website and registration will be open one month in advance

O Google will make the complete survey available to download soon.