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There have been a lot of things written about soft skills, job readiness and being work ready but what are the real hard facts? Some recent studies can reveal the actualfacts through statistics. So let’s look at some of these studies. A recent survey of 810 small- to medium-sized employers suggests that soft skills are generally more valued than technical knowledge when assessing candidates for graduate roles. Top 10 important skills for graduates: 1. Good communication skills - 69% 2. Ability to take initiative -57% 3 .Team-building skills -52% 4. Good time management skills -50% 5. Creative thinking -46% 6. Basic IT skills -43% 7. Good presentation skills -40% 8. Sector knowledge -34% 9. Advanced IT skills -32% 10. Ability to speak a foreign language -10% (Ref: www.hrmagazine.co.uk/hro/news/1145991/communication-valued-graduate-skill-sme-employers) In this study of line managers by ICM Research it was revealed that: * 30% of line managers say staff who proactively try to improve their skills outside of work are more likely to get promoted * 24% believe it is their employees’ skills that set their company apart from the competition. * 35% are providing opportunities for employees to continuously grow their skills as a core to business priority * 18% of line managers say candidates with volunteering or community work under their belts go straight to the top of the interview pile The research also showed that there are key personal qualities that line managers seek and they are: * 33% Strong work ethic * 31% Commitment * 29% Communication skills * 28% Team working skills * 37% of line managers felt young people were not aware of the importance of skills * 26% think soft skills should be listed ahead of qualifications (Ref: https://www.trainingjournal.com/articles/news/young-job-seekers-advised-play-their-soft-skills) It is difficult for a number of diverse businesses to agree on anything; so it is interesting that most do agree on the facts that their employees MUST HAVE soft skills to be successful. One of the on-going questions that continues to come up is why colleges and universities are NOT teaching job readiness/soft skills. Here is an interesting study by the Lumina Foundation on their Inside Higher Ed Poll. While 96% of academic officers believed that colleges were preparing their students for workplace success only 11% of business leaders strongly agree that graduates have the skills to succeed at work. (Ref: http://diverseeducation.com/article/67951/) Right away we see that there is a gap of misunderstanding between academia and the business world that is resulting in a work force that is not work ready. It is time to face the hard fact that our employees NEED soft skills! Jim Stedt is a partner at The Business SoftSkills Company (GetSoftSkillsNow.Com) located in Santa Ana, California. They provide job readiness and workforce success videos for education, business, prisons and individual use. Training is available online, on DVD, or through an affiliate program. These products are the most complete and concise soft skills training packages now available for the price of an average college textbook.
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Job readiness, work ready, soft skills,
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