What Everyone Must Know About Skills Gap [Infographic]
There is a need for everyone to understand what the skills gap is, its effects, and the necessary measures needed to close skills gaps. The skills gap is widening every day, and its effects are not limited to some groups of people but to everyone, including individuals, employers, as well as the nation.
The effect of the skills gap might be more than it seems to be right now, and its potential might lead to real issues if adequate measures are not taken. Now let's explore the skills gap, why it exists, its effects on employers, individuals, and the U.S. economy, and the industries where skills gaps exist.
What is the skills gap, and does it affect me?
You might have heard the word skills gap, or you have a deep understanding of what skills gap is, but you are wondering if skills gap really affects you. Let me start by explaining what a skills gap is. A skills gap can be described as when employers can't get appropriately skilled employees. It is simply the difference between the skills needed for a job and the skills available for the Job.
You might begin to wonder how does skills gap affects you. To clarify your concerns, a skills gap means you might not have the required skills for the jobs available. For instance, hearing about the recent growth in the tech industry, have you ever wondered what it will be like to have a skill that qualifies you for the Job? You don't want to complain about unemployment when there are industries that need employees but can't get them because of a lack of required skills.
Why does the skills gap exist?
The existence of a skills gap can be linked to several reasons. They mainly depend on the individual industry and the skills needed. Let's go over some of the fundamental reasons why the skills gap exists;
Educational system: we can't talk about the existence of a skills gap without first looking at the educational system. The U.S. educational system is said to be a significant contributor to the skills gap. For instance, research shows that degrees are earned more in low-demand sectors. According to a National Center for Education Statistics report, 281,000 degrees in social science, history, and psychology were discovered by researchers from the U.S. 2020 graduating class. It is not limited to having degrees anymore but having the necessary skills to upskill and meet up with current trends.
Technology: you will agree with me when I say technology is not what it used to be years ago. With so much advanced technology in recent days, tech organizations need skills that match the fast-growing tech industry. The skills gap here can be linked to the lower availability of skills in this sector.
Training: It was common in the past for employers to employ unskilled workers and give them the necessary training to become skilled on the Job. However, with the current economy and the desire to have instant results, employers are instead looking to hire skilled workers.
Retiring baby boomers: quite a large number of baby boomers retire each day. As a result, employers will soon face a severe shortage of highly trained workers, forcing them to race to find replacements for senior-level positions.
What is the impact of the skills gap on employers?
The skills gap poses a serious policy issue; unfortunately, employers are the ones extremely affected. Firstly let's go into how the skills gap affects employers;
Reduced productivity: having fewer employees in a company that requires more will indeed reduce productivity. Also, managers will frequently need to assist workers that need more skills, which also leads to a waste of time.
Reduced profits: Productivity levels that are below average and poor quality can soon have a negative impact on profit and loss statements. A lack of skilled workers may prevent an organization from making the sales it needs to survive and expand.
Increased performance problems: A worker may do substandard work if they lack several of the abilities required to complete the task at hand. Particularly in technology and manufacturing, workers must do their jobs correctly and adequately to ensure that products satisfy a given quality.
Lower global competitiveness: Without a skilled workforce in local businesses, the nation will be behind in advancement compared to other countries. For instance, corporations in Singapore place a strong emphasis on giving employees problem-solving and numeracy abilities. Switzerland is also a global innovator because they have highly skilled employees.
Effect of skills gap on individuals
The skills gap makes getting a job challenging for individuals. This is mainly because employers are not interested in upskilling employees due to the cost and time required. Employers are more interested in instead going for skilled workers. Therefore skills gap makes it difficult for individuals to fill open jobs position.
Also, the skills gap makes it challenging to build a long-lasting career. We all love to build a solid career, but without having the skills in high demands industries, it will be challenging to build on something stable. To stay relevant in the game, an employee must have the required skills to be who employers need.
Effects of skills gap on the U.S. Economy
Every nation's economy depends significantly on how skilled the society is; this means that the more a country is highly skilled, the more its economy will flourish. For our nation to lead in global innovation, guarantee future economic growth, and promote job creation, we need a high-caliber workforce. Sadly, the skills gap in the United States is real and widening. Organizations need help locating people with the skills and training required to fill open positions. Most high school and college grads and some adult professionals lack the fundamental skills required in the twenty-first-century workplace. This disparity of skills makes unemployment worse and slows down economic expansion.
“Most high school and college grads and some adult professionals lack the fundamental skills required in the twenty-first-century workplace. This disparity of skills makes unemployment worse and slows down economic expansion. ”
Where is the skills gap?
Knowing where the skills gap is is essential to enable individuals to know which skills they need to acquire. However, people might generally lack general literacy, numeracy or basic tech knowledge skills. However, some industries suffer from skills gaps more than others. Let's go over sectors where the skills gap is more predominant;
Manufacturing: 80% of manufacturing businesses report having trouble filling open positions with qualified candidates. Multiskilled workers are frequently sought after by manufacturers. Additionally, there is an apparent rise in the demand for workers with expertise in robotics, automation, and the Internet of Things (IoT). Still, there needs to be more of them to match the demand.
Engineering: It should come as no surprise that, given the advancement of technology, the engineering sector is struggling with some of the most challenging skills gaps in all of the business.
Digital Industry: The covid-19 pandemic has made businesses notice a greater emphasis on digital skills. As a result, the skills gap in the digital industry is more severe than ever. The modern economy now requires digital capabilities in all areas. Thus the issue is not limited to tech and internet employment.
Software: As industries look to innovate and automate their processes, the software has steadily increased. Therefore, there is a greater skills gap in this industry as the rate of individuals in this skill is limited compared to their demands.
Business sales executive: This industry requires verbally skilled and good customer service skills. However, the industry needs to improve because qualified professionals are limited.
Constructions: The construction industry is mainly an aging one, and with the retirement of baby boomers, the skills gap here is rising speedily.
Other industries where we have skills gaps are
· Finance and business
· Logistics
· Nurses
· Teachers
· I.T. User Support Technicians, etc.
Way Forward
By now, as an individual or a company, you must have realized that there is a need to close the skills gap. Both employers, individuals and nations at significant need to find means to close the skills gap because the effect is on all categories.
For the economy to be more sustainable, there is a need to close the skills gap. Also, for industries to have increased efficiency and productivity, it is necessary to address the skills gap issues.
As individuals, you don't want to restrict yourself due to not having the necessary skills to get excellent and profitable jobs. It is essential to close your personal skills gap to establish yourself and succeed in high-paying jobs. Now onto the next. How do we close the skills gap?