As unemployment soars countrywide, catapulted by the negative economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, employers have increasingly become picky in the criteria for hiring new staff members.
A survey report by the Centre for Peace and Spirituality titled State of Graduate Employability in Kenya released in May 2020, showed that employers preferred soft skills to technical ones.
In order to attract the right professionals, the report shows employers have identified nine priority skills that job seekers should be keen on growing to become more attractive in the job market.
1. Basic Skills (78.3%)
According to the study, most employers who were interviewed disclosed that they looked for basic skills from their interviewees including excellency in numeracy, writing, reading, and ICT skills.
This was informed by the increasing use of technology in the 21st-century world. The respondents preferred their candidates to have basic thinking skills in which they can read, understand and make informed decisions.
"78.3% demonstrated that basic skills (good with numbers, good reading & writing skills, ICT skills) are a very important skill with 15.2% suggesting it is important and only 6.5% indicating it is less important. In other words, a majority of 93.5% of employers consider basic skills important," an excerpt from the report reads.
2. Team Work (65.2%)
Several other respondents disclosed that having employees with the ability to work as part of a team was valuable to the general growth of their companies.
"All employers that participated in this study were given a list of ten skills to decide on which is very important, important, less important, unimportant and not important at all when it comes to employability in their company/organization/institution."
3. Work-Life Attitude (65.1%)
Employers often seek staffers with the right attitude towards their jobs in general as well as the specific tasks they would be undertaking once hired.
This, as most have attested, often aligns the employees towards achieving the goals set by the companies they work for.
4. Communication Skills (60.9%)
For decades, communication has ranked among the most important skills a person must possess, not just at work but in general life and 60 percent of employers agree that it is among the most valuable skills they look for in prospective employees in 2020.
5. Planning and organizational skills (54.3%)
Companies also prefer that their employees possess a high degree in managing themselves both in their personal lives as well as their professional ones.
This may manifest in numerous ways including showing up to work on time and properly aligning one's tasks throughout the day.
6. Decision-making skills (45.7%)
The decision making skill is closely intertwined with basic skills in that for a person to make informed decisions about, they have to possess the ability to process information.
Employers feel comfortable surrounded by individuals that have honed their decision-making skills which often manifests itself in their work output.
7. Adapt to change (39.1%)
In the workplace, just like in general adult life, an individual is required to have the ability to adapt to different situations and make informed decisions when faced with each situation.
8. Sector-specific skills (34.8%)
It goes without saying that an individual must always seek to offer services in sectors in which they are qualified and this does not only have to emanate from their academic qualifications but self-taught skills as well.
With the introduction of the internet, people can learn skills on their own and move on to become experts in new fields. This offers a good complimentary to changing with the times when it comes to updating one's academic qualifications.
9. Analytical & problem-solving skills (28.3%)
The employees must also harness their analytical skills and should be able to aide their respective companies in solving problems, many of which may arise as time goes by, especially with the introduction of disruptors such as the internet.
Employers also mentioned that they prefer employees who took the time to learn a foreign language.
"Universities should encourage students to take advantage of open and free online learning platforms, exchange programs and strategic partnerships that seek to improve their communication skills, in addition to other sector-specific skills, team working capabilities and problem-solving skills which are deemed important for graduates when seeking job opportunities," the report recommends.
