Mix of critical job skills employers are struggling to find

A new study suggests that the frustrations employers go through in the search for competent people to employ might worsen unless resolved.

The Innovative Secondary Education for Skills Enhancement (ISESE) report launched in Nairobi recently by Results for Development Institute (R4D) indicates that by 2030, about 3.5 billion people will be in the global labour force, but up to one billion out of this number will lack the relevant skills to secure employment.

The research found that many people in the job market, whether university or middle-level college graduates or secondary school leavers, lack one or all of the three critical qualities employers want. These are analytical, technical and non-cognitive skills.

Analytical skills are basic mental abilities necessary to think, study and learn. They include numeracy and literacy.

Non-cognitive skills refer to personality traits and behaviours. They include leadership, communication, and reliability. These are the soft skills or behavioural values, which have become important for employers.

Technical skills are the hands-on sector-specific abilities, such as electrical wiring, plumbing, or editing and graphic design.

“Employers are as concerned about soft skills as they are about analytical or job-specific skills. In the informal sector, soft skills are even more crucial. As such, workers need to be able to work along the entire length of the value chain,” recommends Nick Burnett, the managing director of R4D, a Washington-based empowerment organisation.

“However,” he adds, “curricula tend not to specify these skills. Where they are included, instructors often lack the appropriate teaching methods and tools, and may not be aware of what employers are seeking.”

Mr Peter Njioka, the learning and development manager at mobile telephone company Safaricom, confirms that employers have faced challenges finding people with the right mix of skills needed for the modern workplace.

“Theoretical knowledge and technical training are important,” he says. “But at Safaricom, we place a premium on skills like innovation and creative thinking.”

To get fresh graduates with these skills, the company embarked on working with training institutions, such as the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) and Moi University, to help hone the skills of students before they join the job market.

“We need ready-now graduates,” says Njioka. “People who can challenge the norms, communicate well and have creative minds apart from the technical skills.”

The R4D report says non-cognitive skills are becoming increasingly important as economies change.

The organisation’s researchers interviewed 83 employers in Kenya, Uganda, Benin, Burkina Faso, and Senegal.

In 2012, the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA’s) published a report about education and training, and it highlighted similar skills needs by employers.