Group 282501

10 workforce skills statistics
every HR leader needs to know

What data from the Gloat Research Group reveals about building
skills-based workforces and what’s holding organizations back

With the pace of change accelerating and the threat of an economic downturn on the horizon, agility is a necessity for achieving operational continuity. While most executives see the value in shifting to a dynamic, skills-based strategy, changing the way work gets done isn’t easy. Rather than searching for a quick-fix solution, leaders must turn their attention toward employees and managers and devise a strategy based on the obstacles they’re facing.

To carve a path forward, Gloat, the pioneer in enterprise talent marketplaces and workforce intelligence, commissioned a survey of more than 1,300 employees and HR managers to get their perspectives on jobs, skills, and the future of work. This survey and report is a companion to our research series on the Great Resignation.  There’s a full report coming out soon (sign up to be notified when it’s available), but we’re sharing the top takeaways now so that you can fast-track your skills-based strategy.

Job information is out of date

HR managers

45%

report their job architecture is out of date

Employees

45%

say job descriptions are out of date, no longer relevant, or they don’t have one

Looking for a telltale sign that measuring work by jobs isn’t cutting it anymore? Both employees and managers acknowledge that their organization’s current approach to jobs leaves a lot to be desired. Rather than relying on static job architectures and descriptions that quickly become out of date, a skills-based organization is designed to be dynamic, real-time, and self evolving.

Jobs and skills information is hard to come by

HR managers

55%

report their current jobs and skills information only partially meets their needs

Employees

23%

say it’s not easy to find upskilling or reskilling programs

Skills-based organizations need a real-time and evolving inventory of workforce skills and capabilities so that leaders can develop, deploy, and tap into talent across the business. Unfortunately, most managers aren’t getting all of the job and skills information they’re looking for. Employees are also feeling this lack of transparency, so much so that more than 1 in 4 workers are struggling to find relevant skill-building opportunities.

Skills are out of sight

48%

report that their skills management inventory is a work in progress

19%

of employees report their current role uses few or barely any of their skills

While almost half of HR managers agree that their skills management inventory is a work in progress, input from employees shows there’s still a lot of work to be done. Approximately one in five workers note their current role uses barely any of their skills, indicating that many people could be doing much more.

Employees aren’t reaching their full potential

55%

are struggling to retain employees, meet their recruiting targets, and fill future skill needs

54%

report their current role doesn’t make good use of their skills

Without a comprehensive and up-to-date skills inventory, it’s nearly impossible for employees to achieve their potential and for managers to proactively address capability gaps. It’s no surprise that more than half of HR managers say filling future skill needs is challenging, while about one in two employees believe their current role doesn’t make good use of their abilities.

Skills challenges exist at every level

HR managers

54%

are struggling to get by in analyzing workforce insights, or don’t have the bandwidth

Employees

25%

report they don’t know what skills are required to progress or be promoted

When it comes to carving a path forward, both managers and employees are looking for new approaches. More than half of HR managers find analyzing workforce insights challenging; these executives are missing out on crucial information that could help them make more effective business decisions. At the same time, limited visibility into skill-building opportunities and a lack of transparency mean that plenty of employees don’t know how to take their careers to the next level.

The Gloat Research Group’s full skills report is a must-read for anyone wanting to make skills visibility and agile skill-building a competitive advantage.

Sign up below to access to our detailed report on the state of building skills-based organizations.

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