Recent Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show the devastating impact of the pandemic on employment. The number of jobs decreased by 6 per cent over the three weeks since mid March, suggesting 780,000 people had lost their jobs by April 4 (SMH, April 21). Altius Group Vocational Services Specialist, Jaclyn Pace explains why in this climate, focusing on transferrable skills and work strengths matters.
It’s important for workers to be aware of, and understand the value of, their transferrable skills and personal work strengths to find jobs in sectors experiencing demand. As the shape of the employment landscape changes, rather than matching industry with industry experience, it’s important for job seekers to look at their transferrable skillset, such as customer service skills or IT skills. Likewise, for employers reshaping their business operations, it’s important to understand their employees’ transferrable skills, natural strengths and work style tendencies.
It’s about knowing what your, or your employees’, transferrable skills and work style are and thinking outside of the box. We need to look to innovative ways to package individual capabilities – just as we’ve seen in the gin distillery industry, where the machinery and skills of the gin distillers have been transferred or deployed to produce hand sanitiser.
Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association Chief Executive Alison Verhoeven said many workers stood down by airlines and gyms due to travel bans and social distancing shutdowns had basic first aid training and could be upskilled and re-deployed in the health sector. Australia’s Qantas Airways Ltd has carried out talks with Woolworths Group Ltd about redeploying some of its workers with the transferable skill of customer service.
This historical job market shift provides organisations with the opportunity to change the way they work and affords individuals the opportunity to enhance their expertise and reflect on their next step professionally.
Employers have had to act promptly, making significant and difficult decisions that enable them to continue to operate in this volatile climate. The value of recognising transferrable skills shines as workplaces shift their internal structures to adapt to changing business needs.
When we are faced with an imminent need to change, employers and employees can take on new opportunities that have the potential to positively impact a workplace, or an individual’s longer-term job security and happiness.
Altius Group Vocational Assessments utilise FuturePathways© Technology to guide individuals who may require vocational, redeployment or outplacement support during these challenging times.
FuturePathways© enables workplaces to identify the transferable skills of their workers to help redeploy them into suitable roles that meet changing business demands.
This innovative assessment platform provides a robust, evidence-based analysis of individuals to match them to the most suitable career pathways aligned to their work style, personality, interests and capabilities for roles currently accessible in the labour market.
Harnessing transferrable skills, is just one of the ways FuturePathways© can support businesses and individuals - full capabilities of the platform are included in our explainer video.
