The Top Ten Skills & Abilities Employers Value
To be successful in the professional world, either running your own business or working for a company, you need a wide range of well-developed skills and abilities. The University of Kent has compiled a list of the skills employers consider necessary for graduates to possess. You can find many similar lists online. This one compiles the results from several surveys conducted at major corporations including Microsoft, The BBC, Target Jobs and NACE.
The lists contain a mixture of hard and soft skills. Hard skills are those which are usually learnable and easy to test such as writing an email. Soft skills are more related to 'emotional intelligence' and working with other people - as you can see from the lists they are highly valued by employers.
The lists contain a mixture of hard and soft skills. Hard skills are those which are usually learnable and easy to test such as writing an email. Soft skills are more related to 'emotional intelligence' and working with other people - as you can see from the lists they are highly valued by employers.
1. Verbal communication - The ability to express your ideas clearly and confidently in speech
2. Teamwork - Being able to work confidently within a team 3. Commercial awareness - Understanding the commercial realities affecting the organisation. 4. Analysing & Investigating Gathering information systematically to establish facts & principles. Problem solving. 5. Initiative & Self Motivation - The ability to act on initiative, identify opportunities & be proactive in putting forward ideas & solutions 6. Drive - The determination to get things done. Make things happen & constantly looking for better ways of doing things. 7. Written Communication - The ability to express yourself clearly in writing 8. Planning & Organising - The ability to plan activities & carry them through effectively 9. Flexibility - Being able to adapt successfully to changing situations & environments 10. Time Management - The ability to manage time effectively, prioritising tasks and able to work to deadlines. |
Other Skills Valued by Employers
Other very important skills the research identified are:
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The World Economic Forum produced a list of the top 10 skills they thought vital for jobs in 2015 and in 2020. You can find more about their report into The Future of Jobs.
Critical Thinking “Critical thinking is the engine of learning” – the qualities listed here are also those that make a successful learner. This short post details “25 Critical Thinking Strategies For The Modern Learner”. |