Dive Brief:
- Employers today are intent on seeking self-management skills such as problem solving and time management, according to the latest Strayer@Work Skills Index.
- Analyzing data provided by LinkedIn, the quarterly study identifies the country’s widest skills gaps in the financial services, food and beverage, healthcare, information technology, manufacturing, retail, and travel and tourism industries.
- Apart from self-management skills, programming skills and the ability to use enterprise software are also increasingly in demand in 2016 Q2.
Dive Insight:
According to a study compiled by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, unfilled jobs cost the U.S. economy $160 billion each year. By determining specific skills gaps, Strayer@Work's Skills Index seeks, among other things, to provide insights for employers to improve their competitiveness by landing the right talent.
While skills gaps (high-demand from recruiters, but a low-supply of skilled candidates) exist in programming and self-management skills, the latest Skills Index found a surplus of candidates with job-specific skills (accounting, financial analysis, visual merchandising) and interpersonal skills.
Within each of the industries examined, the need for certain skills continued to grow in Q2 compared to Q1. For example, the skills gaps for clienteling (-2.8%) and retail buying (-7.1%) in the travel and tourism industry increased significantly from quarter to quarter. Also, despite interpersonal skills being in surplus when averaged across all industries, in the financial services industry, interpersonal communication skills are experiencing a growing deficit (-14.2%).
McKinsey reports that U.S. employers spend $170 billion a year on training and development, but 92% of CEOs feel they don't get a return on that investment. Using tools like the Skills Index may give HR leaders and employers better information and improved results in recruiting and talent development.
