ICT-skills and e-skills are other concepts which are often encountered in connection with discussions about digital literacy. ICT skills must be seen as a somewhat narrower concept than the concept of digital literacy. "e-skills" covers more skills than just ICT-skills.
In the knowledge economy, not only are new types of skill sets required, but lifelong learning, often supported by ICT itself (i.e. eLearning), is already becoming a prominent feature of work in the 21st Century.
The European Union has identified eight key competence domains (covering knowledge, skills and attitudes) which should be acquired by the end of compulsory education, and achieved (if absent), maintained and updated in lifelong learning:
- communication in mother tongue
- foreign languages
- mathematical literacy and basic competences in science and technology
- ICT skills
- learning-to-learn
- interpersonal and civic competences
- entrepreneurship
- cultural awareness.
Of these, eSkills are critical, and do not only encompass ICT skills but also other skills necessary for optimising the use of ICT and working in a knowledge economy context. The European eSkills Forum (2004) defines three main types of eSkills:
- ICT practitioner skills: the capabilities required for researching, developing and designing, managing, producing, consulting, marketing and selling, integrating, installing and administrating, maintaining, supporting and servicing ICT systems.
- ICT user skills: the capabilities required for effective application of ICT systems and devices by the individual. ICT users apply systems as tools in support of their own work, which is, in most cases, not ICT. User skills cover the utilisation of common generic software tools and the use of specialised tools supporting business functions within sectors other than the ICT industry.
- eBusiness skills: the capabilities needed to exploit the opportunities provided by ICT, notably the Internet, to ensure more efficient and effective performance of different types of organisations, to explore possibilities for new ways of conducting business and organisational processes, and to establish new businesses.
In addition, however, modern working conditions often require further mixes of generalised and more advanced skills and competencies. In a fast changing work environment, with a wide variety of work forms and contractual arrangements, there is an increasing need for individuals to take responsibility for their own work and skills development. This includes fostering abilities like self-organisation and management, inter-personal skills, dealing with unexpected rather than routine situations, greater initiative and self reliance, etc.