KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 13 — It has become evident that most employers aren’t getting what they want from graduates today.

This was made clear after UK-based global higher education company Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) conducted a comprehensive survey among over 11,000 employers and prospective students worldwide to examine the relationship between graduate skills and employer expectations in today’s ever-changing job market.

As a result, the report titled “The Global Skills Gap in the 21st Century” revealed that most graduate hires failed to meet their employer’s expectations.

But what skills do employers seek in their graduate recruits that are beyond academic qualifications?

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To help students and graduates better understand these key employability skills, Malay Mail asked two industry experts to highlight what today’s employers look for in their fresh hires.

While the knowledge and skills required may vary from job to job, Oppstar Malaysia director of engineering Lee Chun Keat said employers today typically look for both soft and relevant technical skills that would make the candidate a worthwhile addition to their respective organisations.

Apart from key skills related to a job function, Lee advised graduates to equip themselves with vital soft skills such as time management and organisational skills, effective verbal and written communication skills as well as excellent teamwork.

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He also listed creative problem-solving, critical and analytical thinking, and adaptability among the most important skills that employers will expect fresh graduates to demonstrate. 

Design Thinking provides a solution-based approach to solving problems. — Picture from Pexels.com
Design Thinking provides a solution-based approach to solving problems. — Picture from Pexels.com

Nurturing future-ready students   

As we rapidly move towards a technology-infused and innovation-filled world, Teledirect Telecommerce (TDCX) chief human resources officer Lim Chee Gay said universities should embrace future-ready teaching methods to prepare students for a constantly evolving world.

“Creating a stimulating classroom environment would prepare students for the industry, especially those that require students to make use of their creativity to leverage information from various sources,” he said.

Lim added that programmes such as Agile Methods and Design Thinking would help students develop new ideas and solutions to address business needs.

Lee, on the other hand, pointed out that educationalists around the world were also discussing about the emergence of Education 4.0 to address the needs of Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0). 

According to him, Education 4.0 will require gradual paradigm shifts that would offer a demand-led rather than supply-led approach to education.

“The education system will also be competency-based instead of knowledge-based, will incorporate practical technological skill sets, provide for lifelong learning, and emphasises the emotional quotient (EQ) rather than just the intelligence quotient (IQ),” Lee added.

Big data analytics is often used by organisations to examine large amounts of data to uncover hidden patterns, correlations and other insights. — Picture from Pexels.com
Big data analytics is often used by organisations to examine large amounts of data to uncover hidden patterns, correlations and other insights. — Picture from Pexels.com

Moving towards IR 4.0

As automation and digitisation continue to shape the next industrial age, both Lee and Lim agreed that students must identify and sharpen their digital literacy skills before joining the workforce.

“Moving into IR4.0 means many new technologies and systems will be incorporated into various professions; besides gaining the knowledge and capabilities to perform specialised tasks, graduates also need to stay above technology trends and know what’s happening in the industry,” Lee said.

He also emphasised on the importance of big data analytics, saying that major corporations today rely on big data, and as a result, employers will be looking for data-literate employees who can understand and manipulate vast quantities of information.

Echoing the same sentiments, Lim said that as technology continues to advance, there is a high chance of repetitive work being replaced by artificial intelligence, hence emerging skills such as cloud computing, analytical reasoning, agile methodology, user experience (UX) design and sales leadership would become highly valuable.

In addition to academic qualifications, Lim also advised students to take up additional courses in areas such as information technology, programming, linguistics and artificial intelligence to stay above other job applicants.

If you are on the lookout to improve your key employability skills, check out how INTI International University & Colleges ensures its students graduate the best possible careers and work opportunities. 

*This article is brought to you by INTI International University & Colleges.