top ten employability skills
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7/7/2014 Top ten employability skills
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What are the top tenskills that employers
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Based on a number of surveys on the skills requiredby graduates undertaken by Microsoft, Target Jobs,
the BBC, Prospects, NACE and AGR and otherorganisations, here is our summary of the skills which
were most often deemed important.
VERBALCOMMUNICATION
1 Able to express yourideas clearly andconfidently in speech
TEAMWORK 2 Work confidentlywithin a group
COMMERCIALAWARENESS
3 Understand thecommercial realitiesaffecting the
SKILLS
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organisation.
ANALYSING &INVESTIGATING
4 Gather informationsystematically toestablish facts &principles. Problemsolving.
INITIATIVE/SELFMOTIVATION
5 Able to act oninitiative, identifyopportunities &proactive in puttingforward ideas &solutions
DRIVE 6 Determination to getthings done. Makethings happen &constantly looking forbetter ways of doingthings.
WRITTENCOMMUNICATION
7 Able to expressyourself clearly inwriting
PLANNING &ORGANISING
8 Able to plan activities& carry them througheffectively
FLEXIBILITY 9 Adapt successfully tochanging situations &environments
TIME MANAGEMENT 10 Manage timeeffectively,prioritising tasks andable to work todeadlines.
Other skills that were also seenas important
GLOBAL SKILLS Able to speak andunderstand otherlanguages.Appreciation of othercultures. See
Study and workplacementsoutside the UK
Practice aptitude tests
The skills game
SPECIFIC SKILLS
Teamworking
Making effectivepresentations
Action planning
Decision making
Problem-solving
Time management
Commercial awareness
Spoken communication
Written Communication
Persuading & negotiating
Leadership
Language skills
Computing skills
Numeracy
Striving for excellence
Determination
Lateral Thinking Test
2nd Lateral Thinking
Riddles Lateral Thinking
Lateral Maths Test
Creative jobhunting
Maintaining morale
Assertiveness in interviews
HOME
CHOOSING A CAREER
APPLICATIONS ANDINTERVIEWS
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Working Abroad
NEGOTIATING &PERSUADING
Able to influence andconvince others, todiscuss and reachagreement.
LEADERSHIP Able to motivate anddirect others
NUMERACY Multiply & divideaccurately, calculatepercentages, usestatistics & acalculator, interpretgraphs & tables.
COMPUTING SKILLS Word-processing,using databases,spreadsheets, theInternet & email,designing web pagesetc.
SELF AWARENESS Awareness ofachievements,abilities, values &weaknesses & whatyou want out of life.
PERSONALIMPACT/CONFIDENCE
Presents a strong,professional, positiveimage to otherswhich inspiresconfidence &commands respect.
LIFELONG LEARNING Continues to learnthroughout life.Develops thecompetencies neededfor current & futureroles
STRESS TOLERANCE Maintains effectiveperformance underpressure
INTEGRITY Adheres to standards& procedures,maintainsconfidentiality andquestionsinappropriatebehaviour.
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INDEPENDENCE Accepts responsibilityfor views & actionsand able to workunder their owndirection & initiative.
DEVELOPINGPROFESSIONALISM
Pays care & attentionto quality in all theirwork. Supports &empowers others.
ACTION PLANNING Able to decide whatsteps are needed toachieve particulargoals and thenimplement these.
DECISION-MAKING Determines the bestcourse of action.Evaluates optionsbased on logic & fact& presents solutions
INTERPERSONALSENSITIVITY
Recognises &respects differentperspectives. Open tothe ideas & views ofothers
CREATIVITY Generates & applyingnew ideas & solutions
The most important skills to develop in employeesto drive company growth over the next five yearswere (according to the Flux Report by RightManagement):
Leadership skills 62%Management skills 62%Interpersonal skills 53%Innovation and creativity 45%Resilience 43%Technical/specialist skills 40%IT skills 40%Sales/marketing skills 32%Client management skills 24%Other/none of the above 4%
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