According to a recent Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) report, job seekers' most deficient social skill is effective communication.
Launched in partnership with Nexford University and the Africa Digital Media Institute (ADMI), the Skills Needs Survey Report 2023 focused on 521 FKE member businesses primarily located in the Nairobi, Coast, Western, and Rift Valley regions.
The report's conclusions state that the primary social skill that job applicants lack is effective communication, as reported by 49.1% of the businesses surveyed.
The highest percentages were 41.7 for critical thinking, 25.7 for teamwork, and 23.4 for time management abilities.
The remaining percentages were 22.1, 21.1, and 20.7 for creativity, problem solving, and conflict resolution.
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"With technological changes, labor market dynamics are evolving faster than ever and the mismatch between workers' skills and those required by available jobs has become a top priority policy concern,” FKE CEO Jacqueline Mugo said during the launch.
“As such, many employers report difficulties finding suitably skilled workers, even though the unemployment rate is high.”
According to a survey conducted by 36% of the surveyed enterprises, the most lacking technical skills among job applicants were computer proficiency and management skills. The proficiency in a foreign language, at 28%, came in close second.
When determining the steps organizations took to lower staff non-proficiency, the results showed that most organizations (73.1%) planned trainings.
Others implemented benefits and performance evaluations (45.3%), enhanced or changed supervision (34.9%), conducted new hires (25.5%), and changed the work organization (12.1%).
Other actions included carrying out appraisals, counselling, assigning duties daily and giving deadlines to different tasks, coaching and mentorship, carrying out employment engagement surveys, staff transfers, on the job trainings, reshuffling of workers, promotions and career development and team building.
"This report sheds light on the critical intersection of education and industry needs. As we navigate the evolving demands of the workforce, it is imperative for educational institutions, businesses, and policymakers to collaborate in shaping an agile and skilled workforce that can drive innovation and sustainable economic growth," said Dr. Laila Macharia, the CEO and co-founder of ADMI.
