It pings the scale somewhere between frustrating/annoying and damaging/crippling. The effects of not having access to job candidates whose skills match the job openings at your client companies. Although a quick fix to this growing dilemma would be awesome, don’t hold your breath. The skills gap developed over time due to a variety of factors. The solution will require time and attention to multiple issues. A short-term solution that focuses on an adjustment in the theories surrounding jobs and skills could lessen the potential loss of business for your firm.
Donna Wells, CEO of Mindflash.com, an online training platform, suggests a shift in recruiting strategies to a “hire for attitude, train for skill” approach. Wells sees this as an initial step in closing the skills gap. She states, “This approach to recruiting prioritizes hiring talent who align closely with a company’s culture, vision and attitude above finding hires with the perfect set of pre-existing skills.”
Consider this scenario. A client needs an experienced call center supervisor for a bustling customer service center, but your pool of candidates doesn’t include anyone with any call center experience. You do however have several candidates with well-developed “people skills”—the former waitress/ hostess supervisor, the hotel front desk clerk and the office receptionist. All of these positions required communication skills and an ability to work well with the public as well as initiative. Each of these applicants presented a pleasant, friendly personality, a positive go get’ em attitude and an eagerness to learn. It’s completely feasible that one of these no-call-center-experience candidates would indeed flourish as the call center supervisor with the appropriate on-the-job training.
Businesses are increasingly prioritizing “soft”, right brain skills as they see the correlation between attitude and long-term performance played out on a day-to-day basis. More social than technical, “soft skills” focus on attitude, habits and people interaction skills.
Some of the most sought-after “soft skills” include—
*Emotional Intelligence (EI): Although you’re not likely to see EI noted in a job description, the social skills, social awareness and self-management abilities that make up emotional intelligence play a strategic role in many jobs.
*Professionalism: Harder to define even than emotional intelligence, yet it’s very apparent when professionalism is lacking. Professionalism encompasses things such as punctuality, politeness, being generally pleasant and helpful, dressing appropriately and taking responsibility for one’s own actions.
*Adaptability: The ability to adjust to changes, to roll-with-the-punches when necessary as well as the capability to manage multiple tasks are all major pluses in most any employment setting. A passion for learning and the desire to grow and stretch your skills to adapt to an evolving environment makes a candidate a desirable staff member.
*Problem-solving skills: The ability to think critically and sift through the layers of a problem using creativity, reasoning, past experience, and available resources is highly attractive to potential employers. Being known as the “go to” problem solver is good thing.
Don’t overlook the importance of “soft skills” when suggesting potential candidates for that hard to fill position.
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