Employable skills

The American workplace is changing rapidly, and the result is a change in the skills that are most important to employers.

Nancy Wegge, a professional speaker and adult educator, presented some of the key traits that good employees need – and how employers can teach those skills – in her presentation, “The Magic of Employability Skills.”

She said many employees are plagued by workers who may have technical ability but lack crucial employability skills.

“There are 3.5 million Americans who aren’t working – and that number is even higher if you count the ones who have jobs,” Wegge joked.

The list of skills that are most crucial in the current work environment paralleled those written down by the people attending the workshop: dependability, a positive attitude, punctuality and efficiency, flexibility, interpersonal skills, self-discipline and honesty.

Wegge cited several reasons why those skills are more important now than ever before, and all have to do with changes in the work environment.

Technology, she said, has been a big culprit.

“There aren’t as many jobs now where someone who only knows how to do one thing can be successful,” Wegge said. “Things have gotten a lot more technical.”

She also cited the increasingly multicultural work force, which requires better communication skills.

There are ways to teach those skills, Wegge said, including communicating higher expectations of employees and using more democratic decision-making.