With Baby Boomers continuing to retire, only 17 percent of hiring managers say prospective applicants to fill these positions have the necessary skills and traits, according to the 2012 Job Preparedness Indicator from the Career Advisory Board, established by DeVry University.
In spite of these findings, difficulties replacing Baby Boomers may not be due to the of a lack of hard professional skills but because candidates applying for managerial-level positions typically do not effectively communicate their skills, says Alexandra Levit, business and workplace consultant and Career Advisory Board member.
"While job seekers in the market may have the appropriate skills for a position, they simply don't effectively communicate the experience and leadership traits sought by hiring managers," Levit says. "Ultimately, senior-level job seekers are underselling themselves; they're not focused on demonstrating higher-order professional skills, like strategic thinking and a global perspective."
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Among respondents responsible for senior-level candidates, 18 percent say few job seekers have the required skills and traits while 13 percent of respondents responsible for entry or mid-level candidates say the same. The greatest demands for candidates looking to fill these positions are for big-picture traits, which includes strategic perspective, global outlook and business acumen. Still, job seekers more commonly focus on skills being sought for lower-level workers, such as strong a work ethic and self-motivation.
Of the job seekers surveyed, 58 percent say they use their own experiences to determine information listed on applications, résumés and cover letters as opposed to asking advice from others. Usually, senior-level job seekers examine how positions can fit them rather than how they can fit positions. Another 66 percent of job seeker respondents report including skills specifically mentioned in the job description. Thirty-four percent of job seeker respondents say they use descriptions of skills or experiences that can be broadly applied to many jobs.
Hiring manager respondents say the top factors that help job seekers attain desirable jobs are prior experience at 81 percent, appropriate education at 73 percent, strong interviews at 67 percent, and willingness to develop skills and gain experience at 56 percent. Meanwhile, job seeker respondents say the top factors are prior experience at 70 percent, appropriate education at 64 percent, strong interviews at 59 percent, and willingness to develop skills and gain experience at 57 percent.
Over the next five years, hiring manager respondents say the skills that are becoming more important are ability to cross function at 77 percent, basic understanding of technology at 62 percent, global perspective at 62 percent and social media usage on the job at 60 percent. Job seeker respondents believe the most important future skills are ability to cross function at 78 percent, basic understanding of technology at 83 percent, global perspective at 54 percent and social media usage on the job at 70 percent.
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