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As soft skills became increasingly important during the COVID-19 era to ensure that authentic and transparent communication could be relayed through a screen, an emphasis went off our technical skills, and organisations are now lagging behind.
Soft skills have always been a core component of what workers need to have in their arsenal as they navigate through their careers, regardless of the industry that they are in. Being able to communicate efficiently is a crucial part of being a valued member of the workforce. Never was this more important than during the COVID-19 era, when communication was suddenly no longer on a face-to-face basis.
As our soft skills grew in a time of adversity, technical skills somewhat dissipated and, for some, failed to develop at the rate that they were prior to the pandemic. From this, there’s been the organisational challenge of the skills gap, and as new technology and strategies are implemented, businesses cannot risk being left behind.
On a recent episode of The HR Leader Podcast, WithYouWithMe chief customer officer Cia Kouparitsas spoke about these skills gaps and their effect on organisations across Australia.
“The challenge organisations have now is, do they have the right skills in place to meet their organisational objectives? And the beauty of taking that skills-based approach is if you can identify the skill gap, you can train specifically to bridge that gap from where someone’s potential might lie, or what they’ve demonstrated, from a soft skill capability to what practically needs to be done to get them armed with the technical skills that the workforce so desperately needs,” said Kouparitsas.
“Post-pandemic, we are seeing so much digital transformation and evolution of what jobs used to look like compared to what they’re going to need to look like in the future. And that’s a great example of gaps in the current workforce where skills can be rapidly taught.”
Although those gaps can be bridged, as Kouparitsas explained, there often is a “lag”, as she describes it, for these skills gaps to be fixed.
“A forward-thinking view is quite difficult as well because not understanding what that demand signal is for the organisation means that there’s constantly going to be a little bit of a lag. This idea of a skills lag is a term that we use to reframe what others typically call a skills gap,” she said.
“We call it a skills lag because it is this continuous delay in the professional development of employees who aren’t receiving guidance on the skills that they should be learning from leaders because they don’t have that demand signal. And essentially, it’s about acknowledging that by the time you do have a skills gap, it’s too late.”
“A skills lag means that the workforce capability of many organisations is just constantly behind. And ultimately, that’s what’s causing these questions around productivity and creating that mismatch of alignment between individual career goals and organisational needs.”
Proactive measures are needed for organisations to break out of the downward spiral of a manifesting skills gap. Kouparitsas offered an alliterated catchphrase that can assist organisations through this issue.
“We call it the three C’s: clarity, capability and closure. Clarity is all about understanding the skills your organisation needs, both now and into the future. And we do that through things like creating skills frameworks. Capability is identifying, assessing and validating your employees’ current skills, as well as their natural strength and their growth potential. And then, lastly, you have closure,” said Kouparitsas.
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A skills gap is the sum of the competencies that an employee or candidate possesses and those that are necessary to effectively complete the job requirements.
Kace O'Neill
Kace O'Neill is a Graduate Journalist for HR Leader. Kace studied Media Communications and Maori studies at the University of Otago, he has a passion for sports and storytelling.
