Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, the equivalent of 305 million full-time jobs have been lost globally, according to the International Labour Organization.
Manufacturers, airlines and retailers have been particularly hard hit, announcing redundancies in the thousands. If you find yourself in this situation, why not use this time to work on your skillset and enhance your employability, instead of focusing on the negatives.
We’ve outlined some of the key skill sets which employers are looking for, below:
Communication
Due to the pandemic, remote working has become more present in society than ever, making the need to communicate efficiently online incredibly important not just for employees, but also for employers.
According to Hays Salary & Recruiting Trends, two-thirds of employers cite communication and interpersonal skills as important – yet only around half of employees report actively developing this skill set. Udemy and OpenLearn, both offer a range of online courses on effective communication in the workplace, personal branding for career success, working in diverse teams, developing career resilience and more. Why not try them out!
Problem Solving
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many businesses to think differently about their problems, as the crisis has created change in everything from operational to business models.
So how can you learn to improve your problem solving abilities? Employers look for individuals with strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills. This three-week online course from RIT can help you learn how to develop these key skills, enabling you to assess and analyse a situation, design a solution, and ultimately win in a competitive scenario.
Analytical Skills
Businesses everywhere are facing and making tough choices, ranging from budgeting decisions to changing headcount. While many people leave this up to management, it has been proven that analytical, focused thinking can help at every level of an organization. Udemy offers thousands of online courses on data analysis from beginner level and beyond.
Leadership Ability
Despite common beliefs, leadership isn’t all about being an executive.
There are useful leadership lessons that anyone, at any level in an organisation, can benefit from. These include being able to make a clear list of your priorities, bringing people together to achieve a common goal, managing risks and setbacks. The benefits are endless.
Reed offers a range of leadership and management courses which you can use to improve your leadership abilities.
Commercial Awareness
Whilst not a technical skill, increasing your understanding of how different industries and businesses work can greatly influence your success. It’s important to know what is going on in the world, and have the ability to analyse it in a way that might better impact your organisation – or your career. Subscribing to The Economist or FT, or other industry relevant news outlets, can help you build a knowledge and understanding of business communities.
If you’re looking for a job in the automotive industry, visit our website to find out more!