A global study by PwC commissioned by LinkedIn,
the world’s largest professional network on the Internet, has included recommendations for professionals, employers, educators and government on poor talent adaptability – the inability for people to retrain for new
skills or switch industries.
The study, Adapt to Survive,
analyses interactions from LinkedIn’s network of 277 million
professionals and information on 2,600 employers from PwC’s Saratoga
database, a resource for people and performance metrics, to establish how 11 markets align talent with opportunity.
According to LinkedIn, professionals, employers, educators and governments can position themselves to minimise the possibility of talent mismatches.
Professionals
The
rise of social media and an increasingly connected global workforce
means it’s never been easier for people to identify new opportunities,
plan to develop the skills, and create a network that will allow them to
transition into new roles. This could be as simple as staying
up-to-speed with companies that might be hiring in your area, or
identifying emerging sectors around the world that could present an
opportunity for a dramatic career change.
Employers
Talent
is the number one factor in competitive success for business, and
businesses need to move faster to adapt to new market forces. An
existing mismatch of talent in the wrong roles creates a window of
opportunity for employers able to identify and attract the right talent
to their organisation.
Social media has made it possible to identify all
the relevant candidates – both active and passive – many of whom may
not be doing the jobs they want. Employers should use talent analytics
to identify the hard and soft skills that are central to the business
strategy today and in the future, allowing them to hire strategically.
Educators
Education
never stops, and educators should be looking at what skills are in
growing demand and which jobs are emerging in the global workforce. They
should then adapt curricula so students are equipped with relevant
skills when they leave formal education.
Governments
Governments
should play an active role in shaping a national mindset that values,
nurtures and rewards adaptability. They need to use the levers at their
disposal such as employment and immigration laws, as well as proactively
shaping education and training systems.