Key skills give the edge

This week's article is in response to the employer from Kingston who wrote to say that even though many of his employees had the technical skills, they lacked other key skills that would give the firm that extra edge. This week, therefore, we look at these other skills, or what are called the key employability skills.

These are the skills young people need to succeed in the world of work. It is good to make an assessment of the use of these key skills in your establishment. See how you compare. These skills can be broken down into two broad categories which we will examine as follows:

(A) Foundation skills

(B) Workplace competencies

A. Foundation skills

These are the basic skills that the employee should have. They include reading, understanding and interpreting written information including manuals, graphs and schedules as these are the types of documents that the employee will use on a daily basis.

The employee should also be able to write, communicate thoughts, ideas, and messages in writing, and document these in the form of letters, manuals, and flow charts. Being able to perform basic computations in arithmetic and mathematics is also a basic requirement for the workplace.

Another foundation skill that is often overlooked is thinking. Thinking skills are necessary for workers to put knowledge into their work processes. The employer expects the worker to think independently and creatively, suggest new ideas and options, make decisions, and solve problems demonstrating the ability to develop and implement a plan of action.

A fundamental skill that each employee should have is knowing how to learn. This is of extreme importance in the 21st century. As technology changes, it is expected that the worker will be able to acquire the new knowledge and skills associated with the technology and apply them on the job.

Some fundamental skills that workers should have are those which reflect personal qualities which make workers dedicated and trustworthy. The employer expects the worker to display a level of responsibility, and to work hard towards the goals and objectives of the company.

The individual should also have a positive outlook, high self-esteem, be confident, be friendly, be able to demonstrate self-control, and be honest.

B. Workplace competencies

Aside from the basic skills, the worker should have a number of workplace competencies. These relate to using resources, interpersonal skills, using information, understanding systems, and working with technology. Let us look at each competence.

(1) Use resources

The worker should be able at all levels to identify what resources are needed to complete a task, then organise and allocate the resources. Remember resources include materials, facilities, time, money, and human resources - the people that are necessary to perform the task.

(2) Inter-personal skills

The employee should be able to work well with persons from diverse backgrounds, whether as a member of a team, teaching another a new skill, exercising leadership qualities, or with customers to satisfy their needs.

(3) Acquire and use information

Employers expect that their employees will have the ability to acquire and evaluate information, organise information in a way that is useful, maintain information as in keeping records, and use computers to process the information.

(4) Understand systems

The employee should be able understand systems, demonstrate knowledge of how social, organisational and technological systems work, and monitor and correct performance to improve the performance of the enterprise.

(5) Work with technology

The staff member should be able to work with a variety of technologies, tools, and equipment including computers. It is also expected that the employee should be able to prevent, identify, and solve problems associated with the technology.

Paulette Dunn-Smith is an international trainer and workforce development expert. She is the executive director: Dunn, Pierre, Barnett & Associates Ltd & chairman, Caribbean Career and Professional Development Institute. Contact her at pdunn@dpbglobal.com or www.dpbglobal.com.