How can employers upskill graduates post COVID?

Candidates for graduate jobs may not always be 'ready to go' - but they'll often be ready to learn. Charlotte Murphy outlines four approaches employers can take to upskilling their recruits

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an observable gap in the workplace between employer and graduate expectations. Research states that only 20% of employers consider their graduate recruits 'ready to go', meaning the rest require further development to reach acceptable standards.

One potential explanation for this problem is the disconnect between traditional education systems and the evolving modern workplace. Often, graduates focus on the development of strong technical skills - however, that means their soft skills are relatively neglected.

These soft skills, referred to by Arctic Shores as 'intangibles', are much harder to teach, and they're only becoming more crucial.1 As automation increases, it is the tasks that require these intangibles that will make up much of a typical employee's workload.

To prepare them - and to ensure the ongoing viability of their businesses - employers urgently need to upskill the students and graduates that they recruit.

The impact of COVID-19

In many ways, COVID-19 has exacerbated the problem. Given social isolation measures, graduates have had fewer opportunities than ever to refine and practice their soft skills.

Coursework that previously involved presenting to an audience, cooperating with class members, and participating in experiential learning greatly reduced when universities closed. Time will tell how well virtual learning has prepared students for the modern workplace.

Last year's lockdowns also led to mass layoffs, the majority of which are predicted to be permanent. Because of this, the landscape of the job market has fundamentally changed: some jobs are gone for good, while other new roles (and new industries) have been created.

As Forbes highlights, 'continuous reskilling and upskilling are essential for an expanding range of business functions'.2 Companies need to develop employees that are adaptable to meet ever-changing business needs.

Four things employers can do

1.  Undertake research to identify gaps - before developing upskilling programs, companies must determine their individual needs. Deloitte recommends that leaders perform thorough assessments to find out the skills their employees currently possess, the skills they are lacking or need to strengthen, and the skills that will be most necessary for the business to achieve its goals.3

Companies should also make an honest appraisal of their current development offerings. That includes reevaluating the curriculum, taking stock of the methods used, and measuring the efficacy of these methods in terms of learning outcomes.

2. Commit to continual investment - if companies are serious about upskilling, they'll have to make space for it in their budget. The bad news for businesses is that this won't be a one-off cost. The workplace will continue to change due to globalisation and technological innovation, and businesses will have to change with it. Upskilling must be an ongoing process.

Human Resource Executive reports that by failing to invest in upskilling key resources, some companies hindered their own ability to respond to the challenges and opportunities presented by COVID-19.4 A commitment to long-term investment in the upskilling of new recruits can help build company resilience, promote growth, and encourage employee retention.

3. Offer opportunities for professional development - to effectively address a wide range of business needs, upskilling strategies must be varied, catering to a mixture of different learning styles. Rather than simply reproduce traditional academic dynamics, they should also aim to reinforce soft skills and incorporate opportunities for practical application.

According to CNBC, the six skills that graduates require post-COVID are customer service, leadership, communication, problem-solving, project management, and marketing.5 While building technical capacity, companies should also aim to strengthen these transferrable, universally useful skills.

Everwise recommends developing targeted coaching and mentoring schemes to address the skills gap.6 Reverse mentoring presents the opportunity to simultaneously upskill more experienced employees who may face difficulties in their digital proficiency.7 It means companies can make the most of the unique knowledge and skills that graduates bring to the workplace.

4. Promote a culture of lifelong learning - a company can prepare for the unpredictable and inevitable changes to come by making lifelong learning an integral part of its culture. If employees have the habit of ongoing professional development, they’ll develop the flexibility required to succeed in the modern business world.

EFront Learning suggests that companies foster this commitment to growth in their employees by making learning goals as important as performance goals and by integrating casual but regular 'learning check-ins'.8

No change is final in the world of business, so companies should expect to consistently upskill their employees. Knowing that, perhaps they should look for candidates that are ready to learn rather than 'ready to go'.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of HECSU/Prospects

Notes

1. Time to address the graduate soft skills gap, Arctic Shores.
2. Fixing the digital skills gap in the post-COVID-19 workplace, Forbes, 2021.
3. COVID-19: The upskilling imperative, Deloitte, 2020.
4. 3 ways upskilling can stimulate the post-COVID economy, Human Resource Executive, 2021.
5. These are the 6 skills college grads need to compete in the post-Covid jobs market: LinkedIn, CNBC, 2020.
6. Bridging the skills gap with mentors, Everwise, 2018.
7. Why reverse mentoring works and how to do it right, Harvard Business Review, 2019.
8. 7 ways to encourage lifelong learning in your business, Efront, 2018.

Written by

Charlotte Murphy

Freelance writer