Are they really ready to work?:
Employers’ Perspectives on the Basic Knowledge and Applied Skills of New Entrants to the 21st Century Workforce.

by Lew Armistead
LA Communications

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(A photo from our 2006 Summer Leadership Institute.)

   
Many high school graduates are deficient in important workforce skills, according to a new report, Are They Really Ready to Work?: Employers’ Perspectives on the Basic Knowledge and Applied Skills of New Entrants to the 21st Century Workforce. The report also offers a challenge and recommendations on preparing students for the work force of the future.

Produced by the Society for Human Resource Management, The Conference Board, Corporate Voices for Working Families and the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, the survey interviewed 431 human resource professionals.

The report contends that more than 40 percent of recent high school grads are not sufficiently prepared for jobs after high school and calls for greater attention to “applied skills.”

“Young people need a range of skills, both basic academic skills as well as the ability to apply these skills and knowledge in the workplace,” the report reads. “The survey results indicate that far too many young people are inadequately prepared to be successful in the workforce.”

 “All of us must do our part to ensure that our students are well-prepared for the workforce demands of the 21st century. The education and business communities must agree that applied skills integrated with core academic subjects are the “design specs” for creating an educational system that will prepare our high school and college graduates to succeed in the modern workplace and community life. These skills are in demand for all students, regardless of their future plans, and will have an enormous impact on our students’ ability to compete.”

Employers reported that 42 percent of high school grads were “deficient” in their overall preparation for the entry-level jobs that they typically fill. Forty-six percent felt that the preparation of those with a high school diploma was “adequate,” and only 0.2 percent called their preparation “excellent.”

Those entering the workforce with some college education or a college diploma were seen as much better prepared but also deficient to some degree. Eleven percent of those with two years of college were rated as “deficient,” while nine percent of college grads fell into that category.

Seventy-two percent of high school graduates were deemed deficient in “writing in English,” a skill half of the employers called “very important” for successful job performance. They felt that 53.3 percent of grads were deficient in mathematics, which one-third of employers called “very important” for performance. Employers called 38.4 percent of grads deficient in “reading comprehension,” which two-thirds cited as “very important” to performance.

Writing skills were also cited as the weakest area of those entering the workforce with college educations.

Looking at specific writing skills, 81 percent of employers said high school grads were deficient in writing memos, letters and complex reports. Respondents “expressed frustration with frequent spelling errors, improper use of grammar, and the misuse of words in written reports, PowerPoint presentations, and email messages.”

Almost 70 percent of the employers also called recent high school graduates deficient in critical thinking and problem solving skills, and 70.3 percent said they were deficient in work ethic, including personal accountability and punctuality.

“To succeed in today’s workplace, young people need more than basic reading and math skills,” said J. Willard Marriott, Jr., chairman and CEO of Marriott International, Inc. “They need substantial content knowledge and information technology skills; advanced thinking skills, flexibility to adapt to change; and interpersonal skills to succeed in multi-cultural, cross-functional teams.”

The survey cited four broad skills areas that are important for success in the workplace—professionalism/work ethic, oral and written communications, teamwork/collaboration, and critical thinking/problem solving.

The employers recommend a number of steps to better prepare high school students for work and enhancing important workplace skills. These include—

• Internships
• Summer jobs
• Work-study programs
• Job shadowing

They believe high schools need to offer “real-world experiences or community involvement, provide opportunities for students to acquire basic knowledge and skills while cultivating applied skills.” The report also recommends that employers and academics work together to make instruction meaningful and internships relevant to workplace needs.

Calling basic skill areas such as reading and mathematics “fundamental” to success in the workplace, the employers stated that 11 applied skills were “very important” in today’s work environment. They are—

• Critical thinking/problem solving—Exercise sound reasoning and analytical thinking; use knowledge, facts, and data to solve work place problems; apply math and science concepts to problem solving.
• Oral communication—Articulate thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively; have public speaking skills.
• Written communication—Write memos, letters and complex technical reports clearly and effectively.
•Teamwork collaboration—Build collaborative relationships with colleagues and customers; be able to work with diverse teams, negotiate and manage conflicts.
• Diversity—Learn from and work collaboratively with individuals representing diverse cultures, races, ages, gender, religions, lifestyles, and viewpoints.
• Information technology application—Select and use appropriate technology to accomplish a given task, apply computing skills to problem-solving.
• Leadership—Leverage the strengths of others to achieve common goals; use interpersonal skills to coach and develop others.
• Creativity/innovation—Demonstrate originality and inventiveness in work; communicate new ideas to others; integrate knowledge across different disciplines.
• Lifelong learning/self-direction—Be able to continuously acquire new knowledge and skills; monitor one’s own learning needs; be able to learn from one’s mistakes.
• Professionalism/work ethic—Demonstrate personal accountability, effective work habits, e.g. punctuality, working productively with others, and time and workload management, and
• Ethics/social responsibility—Demonstrate integrity and ethical behavior; act responsibly with the interests of the larger community in mind.

The employers were also given seven “emerging content areas” and asked which they believed were the most critical for future grads entering the workforce in the next five years. The top choice (76.1 percent) was “make appropriate choices concerning health and wellness, e.g. nutrition, exercise, stress reduction, and work-life effectiveness.” The report indicated this is becoming an important issue to businesses as health costs for employees rise.

The other six areas were—

• Exercise personal financial responsibility, e.g. balancing a checkbook, budgeting skills, retirement planning (71.5 percent);
• Use entrepreneurial skills to enhance workplace productivity and career options (70.5 percent);
•Understand economic issues and the role of business in the United States and global economy (60.6 percent); demonstrate understanding of global markets and the economic and cultural effects of globalization (52.9 percent)
• Participate effectively in community and government as an informed citizen (51 percent); and
• Use non-English languages as a tool for understanding other nations, markets, and cultures (49.7 percent).

Among basic skills, speaking a foreign language(s) elevates to very important in the minds of these employers when looking at the skills employees will need in the future. While only 11 percent of the respondents cited foreign languages as very important for current job performance, 63.3 percent call it a “basic skill that will increase in importance.” When looking at the future, it is the highest ranking basic skill, according to the employers in this study.

“We have employees in Mexico, Belgium, the UK, and conduct business in several international markets directly or through joint ventures,” said Randy Steinhoff, Quest Diagnostics. “Foreign languages are important in a global economy. In the past, we had not paid enough attention to this. Now, knowledge of foreign languages is in our leadership profile. We’re asking people what languages they speak.”

The complete report is available at this link.

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