LinkedIn Skills on the Rise 2026: The fastest-growing Business Development skills in Canada
Our annual list of Skills on the Rise in Business Development highlights the five fastest-growing skills that business development professionals in Canada should be investing in to get ahead in today’s world of work.
As the business development landscape rapidly evolves, so do the skillsets needed for success. AI Literacy (No. 1) and Process Automation (No. 4) signal how professionals are leveraging new tools to maximize their productivity in strategic areas. Meanwhile, people-centric skills like Cross-Functional Collaboration (No. 3) emphasize the importance of soft skills in orchestrating partnerships and executing deals. The ranking uses the same methodology as our Canada Skills on the Rise list, but reflects members within the specific job function versus the entire country.
And these insights are just the beginning. You can read more about each skill and start honing your expertise through a related LinkedIn Learning course (free for all members until March 23).
Check out the 5 fastest-growing skills in business development — and join the conversation using #SkillsOnTheRise.
You can read our full methodology at the bottom of this article. This list is based on LinkedIn data and was produced by LinkedIn data scientist Yao Huang in partnership with editors on the LinkedIn News team (Juliette (Faraut) Bell, Sarah McGrath, Emily Bruck and Juliette Schiff). You can also see the Skills on the Rise in Engineering, Finance, Information Technology and Sales.
What it means: AI literacy encompasses the ability to understand and effectively utilize AI tools and technologies for business purposes. Business development teams may leverage AI to identify and analyze potential leads and gain pipeline insights.
💡 Learn how to integrate AI tools into business development workflows (free LinkedIn Learning course until March 23)
What it means: Cross-functional collaboration is communicating and working with members of different teams across an organization — including clearly defining roles and responsibilities and working toward a shared goal.
💡 Learn how to foster effective collaboration across teams (free until March 23)
What it means: Data-driven decision making references the use of data and metrics, like market trends or customer behavior, to make informed business decisions. It can help business development teams analyze new growth opportunities, refine partnership approaches and more.
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What it means: Process automation involves leveraging technology to perform routine or repetitive tasks — freeing up time for professionals to focus on strategic work. Some of these tasks for business development teams might include regular outreach or CRM data entry.
💡 Learn how to use AI to automate complex business processes (free until March 23)
What it means: Event marketing is planning and executing in-person events like conferences or workshops in order to promote a company or the products and services it offers. These events can help strengthen relationships and loyalty and ultimately drive revenue.
💡 Learn how to build effective event marketing strategies (free until March 23)
List Methodology
LinkedIn measures the year-over-year growth of skills based on two pillars: skill acquisition and hiring success. Skill acquisition measures the growth of a given skill being added to member profiles. Hiring success measures the growth of a given skill possessed by members who have been hired in the past year. Growth rates for all metrics are measured by comparing LinkedIn data from December 1, 2024 to November 30, 2025 to the same period in the previous year (December 1, 2023 to November 30, 2024). To be ranked, skills must have had sufficient representation and activity volume over the analysis period.
Data is normalized across all skills. Language skills, basic digital literacy skills and overly broad skills are excluded.
Ensure wholesomeness of communication
Great question. Being knowledgeable is no longer a value asset. AI can answer our questions in no time at all. In my design business, I ask questions that computers cannot answer, such as “What should the space I am designing actually feel like?” or “What can I take away from this space that will add value to it?” The new value assets are taste and discernment. What AI currently lacks is taste or discernment. It cannot address the questions which require these attributes to provide an answer. Taste is the distinct ability to look at countless options and instinctively identify what matters or adds value, and more importantly, what does not. Taste is intrinsically human and involves discernment in a specific space and time. Discernment is about instinctively knowing which things do not add value and need to be removed to create a space that feels right for the users. AI is a great tool for gaining knowledge; however, I think it takes a human with taste and discernment to answer the design questions that a computer cannot. What do you think?
I would agree with the first four, except for Event Marketing, because these processes are already automated. Rather, I would like to add Negotiation skills as a key tool for reaching mutually beneficial agreements.
This is a great list. I whole-heartedly agree with the these skills - especially the top 3. There does seem to be a continued need for growth mindet and innovative thinking as well.
My top five look very different. With the explosion of AI, many teams have lost the core skills that actually drive revenue. 1. Emotional Intelligence & Personality Profiling Relationships still drive revenue. Higher EQ = 25% greater productivity, 15% stronger closing. Understanding buyer motivators can increase conversions by 27%. 2. Team Alignment Aligned sales systems = 32% higher win rates + stronger retention. Misalignment leaks revenue. 3. Repeatable Processes Companies with structured sales systems outperform by 28%. Predictability drives growth. 4, Follow-Up & Networking 24% of revenue happens in the follow-up — yet few execute well. As digital communication increases, face-to-face relationship building is becoming a competitive advantage & one of the top ways to grow business. 5. Digital Transformation & Lead Gen With spam and telphone filters increasing in sophistication, digital visibility and automation are 'must-haves' today. AI is powerful. But I believe human skill still wins deals. #SkillsOnTheRise #SalesLeadership #BusinessDevelopment #Rainmakers