Top 15 Most In-Demand Jobs in Indonesia
According to a 2020 study from Reuters, around 6.4 million Indonesians had lost their jobs due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic –– since then, millions of other jobs have either been phased out, furloughed, or made redundant. And for a once strong economy like Jakarta’s (population: 10.5 million people), this has resulted in significant financial hardships for countless families.
The hiring boom has since steadied in the last two years, and employment has rebounded in many Southeast Asian markets. As Indonesians head back to work in 2024 and beyond, job seekers must aim to stand out. And the best way to do this is by having a solid understanding of the most desirable jobs on the market. Before you begin your search, consider this: what skills are in high demand in Indonesia right now? Armed with this information, you will be much better prepared come interview time.
Here’s our list of the most in-demand skills and the most in-demand jobs in Indonesia in 2024.
What Skills are High In-Demand in Indonesia?
Top 10: The Most In-Demand Skills in Indonesia in 2024
Job candidates who possess great project management skills can expect to successfully plan, manage, and execute business projects for several different industries throughout Indonesia and the world. Such experience needed for these types of positions includes a mix of technical know-how and interpersonal skills to monitor and assess project performance, manage the flow of resources, lead effective teams and deliver results to key stakeholders.
Industries: Government, Marketing, Retail/Wholesale
Job titles: Project Manager, Risk Manager, Procurement Director
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology has become extremely popular in Indonesia, and the world, in the past ten years –– and examples are everywhere: self-driving cars, delivery robots, and automated retail checkout machines. People who work in AI typically develop intelligence software and systems based on how the human brain adapts to and solves problems, enabling machines to operate like humans. As a result, these jobs require technical and computer skills like programming languages, signal processing, and machine learning.
Industries: e-Commerce, Sales, Hospitality, Education
Job titles: Data Scientist, Machine Learning Engineer, Business Intelligence Developer
Not only is it important for those working within the social media marketing industry to be creative, but there are also plenty of technical and analytic skills required, too. Social Media Marketing Specialists don’t just post content onto a company’s social media channels –– there is so much more to it: namely the ability to understand market trends, customer spending habits, and other essential insight metrics.
Industries: e-Commerce, Retail, Advertising, Education
Job titles: Social Media Marketer, Paid Search Manager, SEO Director
With many people working from home or limiting their time spent outside commuting to an office, there are fewer eyes on the street to notice out-of-house advertising signage (like those found on billboards, bus ads, and live, experiential marketing pop-ups). As a result, many companies throughout Indonesia, especially in bustling downtown Jakarta, are rethinking advertising strategies by emphasizing greater digital and web design work in the hopes of grabbing the attention of audiences online. The result? An influx of graphic designer positions is being sought out to fulfill the work.
Industries: Advertising, Publishing, Education, Sales
Job titles: Art Director, Graphic Designer, Production Artist, Creative Director
Some of the skills required to be one of Indonesia’s most talented and effective Digital Marketing specialists involve acute attention to detail, the ability to interpret all types of data, and communicating the hottest trends to assemble effective marketing strategies. Digital marketing is a rapidly growing industry in Southeast Asia, so the roles are readily available if you’ve got what it takes.
Industries: e-Commerce, Retail, Advertising, Education
Job titles: Digital Marketing Specialist, Marketing Coordinator, Web Marketing Specialist
Whether you’re looking to enter the financial industry, the business arena, or even on the fast-paced e-commerce side of things, the ability to collect and effectively analyze a company’s data to gain useful insights and share with stakeholders in the form of easy-to-understand graphs and charts is a viable and in-demand job opportunity –– one that typically comes with fulfilling rewards.
Industries: Retail, Agriculture, Banking/Finance, Government
Job titles: Data Analyst, Data Engineer, Marketing Analyst, Business Intelligence Analyst
Just about every business in every sector of the workforce has an online presence –– either web or mobile. And those businesses need their customers to navigate their sites seamlessly to learn more or complete purchases. This is where a User Experience (UX) Designer comes in. So much more than an art director or graphic designer, these industry heavyweights use a lot of research skills to determine best practices, usually in the simplest, most straightforward way possible. And while a lot of work tends to fall on the shoulders of UX Designers, positions are sought-after and generally well-paid.
Industries: e-Commerce, Retail, Advertising, Education
Job titles: UX/UI Designer, Content Developer, Content Strategist
Businesses need people with market research skills to better understand their audiences. So, a Market Researcher who can interpret and utilize relevant data to develop more effective selling strategies will continue to be an in-demand position in many different industries.
Industries: Retail, Hospitality, Financial, Healthcare
Job titles: Marketing Research Associate, Data Analyst, Research Assistant
With innovative and new technologies continuing to spring up each business quarter, it’s no surprise that job candidates with strong web development skills are in-demand across most of Southeast Asia, especially in Indonesia. Possessing the skills to learn a library of programming languages (Java, CSS, HTML) is beneficial for anyone looking to take their development career to the next level.
Industries: Information Technology, Finance, Marketing, Education
Job titles: Web Developer, HTML/CSS Writer, Content Management Specialist
From billboards to in-store signage; to newsprint and magazines and blogs –– a copywriter’s job is incredibly diverse. These insightful authors communicate a company’s brand vision directly to the world in engaging and oftentimes entertaining ways. They tell more than just a story: they tell audiences why they should think, feel, react, and shop. And they will always be in demand.
Industries: Advertising, Retail, Art/Culture, Publishing, Education
Job titles: Copywriter, Content Writer, Creative Director, Freelance Writer
What are the Most In-Demand Jobs in Indonesia?
Top 15: The Most In-Demand Jobs in Indonesia in 2024
Top companies hiring: PT Global, Kompas Gramedia, Swee Lee, TikTok, Levi Strauss & Co.
Salary range: IDR 5,000,000 – 15,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Also known as e-Comm Business Analyst, these jobs are becoming more in-demand thanks to the abundance of people shopping online –– a practice that shows no signs of slowing down. Demand for qualified Specialists with retail and e-commerce skills in Indonesia will certainly grow well beyond 2023.
Top companies hiring: Asian Development Bank, Citi, Accenture, Deloitte, MasterCard
Salary range: IDR 7,000,000 – 15,000,000 per month
Career prospects: A Financial Advisor, or Financial Planner / Controller, helps individuals to budget and manage their money using up-to-date strategic thinking and other high-level skills. There is always a need for these types of positions as many rely on others to oversee their funds to avoid conflicts of interest, or simply because they aren’t good at handling money. Financial Advisors are always in demand.
Top companies hiring: AnyMind Group, Monroe Consulting, Mariott, Sheraton, Carro
Salary average: IDR 4,000,000 – 20,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Companies in all industries rely on Human Resources (HR) staff to source, interview, and hire the best candidates for their openings. Without an HR Manager, businesses would struggle to bring quality workers on board.
Top companies hiring: Schoters, NOBI, Mekari, Indomaret, Happy Fresh, GudangAda
Salary range: IDR 4,430,000 – 12,700,000 per month
Career prospects: Also known as Content Specialists or UX/UI Developers, this integral role is essential for companies looking to create navigable web and mobile sites for their customers. As the shift to e-comm continues to grow, these types of jobs will be in high demand.
Top companies hiring: UKU Indonesia, Elabram Systems, Mekari, Agiloft
Salary range: IDR 7,000,000 – 15,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Writing for web and digital platforms in coding languages like Java is essential to countless companies. Java Programmers, or Java Developers, are vital to any business with a digital presence, so these roles are always in high demand.
Top companies hiring: Tiktok, Hypefast, Rocketindo, United Creative, Migo
Salary range: IDR 4,000,000 – 12,000,000 per month
Career prospects: A massively in-demand skill within the digital and e-tail industries, social media marketing helps spread the word about a company’s products or services to millions of content-hungry followers around the globe.
Top companies hiring: Mekari, Quintal Indonesia, Micron Technology, Moka, Deloitte
Salary range: IDR 10,000,000 – 20,000,000 per month
Career prospects: The demand for Software Developers (also known as Software Specialists or Software Engineers) has steadily grown since the early 2000s –– especially in major metropolitan areas of Indonesia like Jakarta and Surabaya. Software Developers typically work hard, long hours but they also have adaptable schedules that offer growth opportunities.
Top companies hiring: Binance, Omnipresent, Evonik Industries, JP Morgan & Co.
Salary range: IDR 3,000,000 – 8,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Despite the rise in information technology and artificial intelligence, traditional customer service is a viable and highly valued professional skill that is always in demand.
Top companies hiring: Amazon, Intel, Lintasarta, Accenture, Deloitte
Salary range: IDR 5,500,000 – 16,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Also called Cloud Specialists and Cloud Architects, Cloud Engineers –– a relatively newer industry –– oversee the seamless functionality of Cloud-based systems within major businesses. The opportunities for future growth within this field are very high.
Top companies hiring: Magnus Digital, Michael Page Indonesia, Mekari, Bintango, Google
Salary range: IDR 7,000,000 – 15,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Digital Marketing Strategists, or Digital Marketing Specialists, are in high demand because companies require a solid strategy for sharing their digital presence with the world. These important roles have demonstrated steady and consistent growth throughout the digital age.
Top companies hiring: Kanmo Retail Group, Jjii, Accor Hotels, PopBox, Zoom
Salary range: IDR 5,000,000 – 20,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Just about every company on the planet operates on a platform of selling –– whether it’s a product or a service. Therefore, the sales division of these companies requires a competent and effective executive-level sales expert to manage their accounts.
Top companies hiring: IBM, Page Group Indonesia, Elabram Systems, HashMicro, GetGO
Salary range: IDR 15,000,000 – 40,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology has become extremely popular in Indonesia, and the world, in the past ten years. These in-demand jobs require technical and computer skills like programming languages, signal processing, and machine learning.
Top companies hiring: Leo Burnett, Canva, The Body Shop, Mekari, Ogilvy
Salary range: IDR 4,000,000 – 12,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Also known as content writers, these roles are in high demand throughout the creative industry, but also within the financial, tech, education, and government sectors.
Top companies hiring: Bayer, Shell, Robert Walters, Tencent, Intel
Salary range: IDR 12,000,000 – 34,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Possessing the talent and experience to lead a team of exceptional business and creative coordinators using results-driven marketing skills is the mark of a great Marketing Manager––a role that has witnessed exceptional growth and demand in Indonesia since the early 2000s.
Top companies hiring: Gokomodo, Design Pickle, Dentsu, Rocketindo, Shopee
Salary range: IDR 3,000,000 – 15,000,000 per month
Career prospects: Graphic designer roles are readily available throughout Indonesia due to the increase in creative design work, and because it is a position that can typically be done remotely.
Find and Apply for Most In-Demand Jobs in Indonesia
There you have it! The most in-demand jobs in Indonesia for 2024. As the world and global workforce continues to evolve, certain job skills will become more sought-after and filling certain positions will become more important. Be sure to stand out from all other candidates –– know where the demand is highest while always brushing up on the most popular job skills. And you’re sure to succeed.
Photo by Bagus Ghufron on Unsplash
