Why the skills gap is growing

It’s no secret that increasing skill gaps is one of the most daunting trends facing organizations today. It’s everywhere. The cause? The shift in skill requirements resulting from the Fourth Industrial Revolution (the impact of automation, digitization, and AI on how work gets done). It has thrown a wrench into the shelf life of a skill, which has decreased dramatically to less than 5 years. The World Economic Forum predicted that at least 54% of employees will need reskilling and upskilling -- an average of 101 days – all in the period leading up to 2022.[i]. This has only been magnified by the impact of the pandemic, as work has changed more quickly.

And the impact of a skills gap can be huge. According to an Accenture Skills & Employment Trend study, among companies currently facing or anticipating a skills shortage:

•       66% anticipate a loss of business to competitors

•       64% face a loss of revenue

•       59% face eroding customer satisfaction

•       53% say they will face a delay in developing new products or services

The biggest problem is that you can’t “train” people as fast as skills are changing

In a perfect world, CEOs wouldn’t have to worry about the skill gaps of their workforce – they would let the workforce own the closing of their gaps, even as those requirements change and become increasingly diverse.

How leaders can close skill gaps at scale

If you’re looking for a strategy that will inspire employees toward increased mastery in their current role, you’re in luck!  People are already intrinsically motivated toward mastery, autonomy/self-direction, and purpose.[ii] What you need is a road map for helping them get there.

Enter competency models. 

Competency models provide each person with a road map for how to be great.  To serve in this capacity, competency models must have these characteristics:

• Be role-based, so they are relevant

• Identify behavioral examples that show the various levels of proficiency separating someone who is adequate in that role from someone who is at the top end of the scale, so they can create a picture of what great looks like and demonstrate how to get there

• Contain those tasks or skills that someone in that particular job role needs to do to achieve their part of corporate strategy

• Be reviewed at least annually for currency and relevance, and make it easy for those people in the role to continuously improve the model

Competency models + competency assessment = targeted action

Once you have models that do that, you need to make them:

• Easily accessible so people can refer to them as often as needed as they grow in their role

• Easy for people to measure themselves against, to help guide their development efforts

When embedded into a competency assessment system/competency development system, after self-assessment, a competency model provides each person with a baseline that tells them what skill gaps exist and what development activities are needed.  In that way, the model can intrinsically motivate people to act to close their gaps. Providing recommended action in the form of personalized, competency-based experiential learning, ensures the best chance for learning transfer while working.

Research shows that the more competent people become, the more engaged and satisfied they become and that leads to retention. And when individuals own closing their skill gaps, the organization’s skill gaps will close.

Can you think of any more effective, low cost way to close skill gaps, upskilling and reskilling on demand, than inspiring and empowering each person to do it themselves?

[i] We need a reskilling revolution. Here's how to make it happen. World Economic Forum. 2019.

[ii] Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, Pink, Daniel. Riverhead Hardcover. 2009.

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