Skills shortage big barrier to success
Business leaders view skills shortage in the future as their biggest barrier to success. With a glut of new career options being thrown open by the economy and the massive exodus of locally available talent to greener pastures abroad, many industries are facing an acute skills shortage. Several factors are contributing to the gap. Jobs are changing, requiring higher skill levels. Considering that just a decade ago, there were a number of jobs and industries that were open
to fresh graduates, the vast majority of jobs today require some kind of specialised training that goes beyond mere schooling and university degrees. The pervasive change in technology is also a major contributing factor to skill shortage, with skills going obsolete in less than the time it takes to learn them.
Another reason for the gap could be that our schools and colleges are not still fully equipped to churn out industry ready candidates. People with three, four, five or even six years’ experience are lacking severely in technical skills, management and leadership competencies apart from emotional skills like persistence, self-discipline and self-awareness.
Skill shortage is not an isolated crisis. Nor is it a short-term hurdle that needs to be tackled with temporary measures. It rather is a looming problem that, if left unresolved, could bring on far reaching consequences on future growth and productivity. With mounting attrition rates and traditional talent pools running dry, how are companies supposed to tackle the skills gap?
Determining the right solution to the skills gap challenge starts with research and planning. At its most basic level, it starts out with identifying skill gaps in core business functions and preparing to fill them.
Such a solution could encompass a risk assessment to determine the impact of skill shortage; a skills audit to quantify current competencies and identify skill deficits and strategies for addressing the shortfall. Depending upon the requirements organisations may use a combination of strategies to address the shortfall.
Training to upgrade the skills of existing staff is a popular option. Apart from helping employees update their technical skills, seminars, classroom sessions, workshops, demonstrations or on-job training can help employees improve ‘managerial skills’ needed by personnel in areas like supervision, man management, planning, problem solving, decision-making and teamwork.
While outsourcing and off shoring arrangements provide a convenient solution for shortages in non-core skills like payroll or accounting, shortages in core skills call for integrated training, talent management and succession planning programmes that go hand in hand with efficient recruiting and retention practices. These measures are immensely useful to the organisation in dealing with skills shortage in the long run because these programmes specifically focus on ensuring the availability of a supply of capable staff that is ready to assume key or critical roles in the emerging future, rather than looking to fill immediate requirements.
Because organisations and the environment in which they operate are changing much faster than they did a few decades ago, the chasm between the skills required and skills available too is widening rapidly.
This is only to be expected. However the key to overcoming the gap is to be able to adapt and change with the times while planning ahead for the future.
BINDU SRIDHAR
faqs@cnkonline.com
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