The 2007 survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) reported a total lack of enthusiasm for hiring new graduates from the class of 2008. Why? In the opinions of the nation’s employers these students lacked the essential skills needed to truly succeed at work—especially writing skills and other communication skills. As the Neely School of Business discovered, the news is not much better in 2009. Executives bemoan the lack of communication and “non classroom” skills in new college graduates.
Many people are blaming the instant messaging, text abbreviation culture for the lack of English skills as well as graduates’ inability to handle face-to-face meetings. Today’s new “professionals” don’t actually know what to do when confronted with a person who wants to TALK. Oddly enough corporate America is shedding older more mature and experienced workers as quickly as possible.
New graduate or seasoned professional, there are several real world tasks you must be able to handle to succeed in the workplace.
• Organize and conduct a meeting—without wasting time or talent
• Conduct a job interview
• Effectively “sell” yourself in a job interview
• Provide constructive feedback
• Recognize appropriate topics for workplace conversation
• Read and understand written material at the “college level”
• Produce understandable and grammatically correct written documents
Can you do all of the above? Are you job ready?
Are you job ready?
May 20, 2009 by karensouthw
Let me turn the mirror on the management. I always wonder how much these survey findings reflect the respondents’ curmudgeon factor, rather than the shortfalls of the job-seekers. I also wonder how these surveys are adjusted for our modern-day loss of business idealism. Businesses in the past were more willing to train young employees in the finer points, in return for their fresh ideas and energy. Now businesses expect immediate perfection in return for willingness to accept an unstable, low-paying career.
I say it’s time to demand more from business.