Identify your employability skills part I [edit I]

What is employability?

Employability has been defined as “the capability for gaining and maintaining employment.” Employability skills are those skills necessary for getting, keeping and being successful in a job. They are the skills and attitudes that enable employees to get along with their colleagues, to make critical decisions, solve problems, develop respect and ultimately become strong ambassadors for the organization. Employability or ‘soft skills' are the foundation of your career building blocks and they are frequently referenced in the media as lacking in school-leavers, graduates and those already in employment.  

Ref http://www.skillsyouneed.com/general/employability-skills.html

“A set of attributes, skills and knowledge that all labour market participants should possess to ensure they have the capability of being effective in the workplace – to the benefit of themselves, their employer and the wider economy.” CBI

You may also see these skills referred to as transferable skills (because skills developed in one area of your life can be transferred to other areas) or personal skills. In the context of your career planning and development, they are called career management skills.

Ref http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/sk/skillsintro.htm

Major employability skills

1. Communication

You have to be a good talker and maybe also a good writer (depending on the job). You have to be confident about speaking to people face-to-face or over the phone, and you may also need to write well enough to be understood in emails and memos.

2. Teamwork

You have to be good at working with people. This means both your workmates and other people that come into contact with your organization.

3. Problem Solving

You have to be able to find solutions when faced with difficulties or set-backs. Even if you can’t think of a solution straight away, you need to have a logical process for figuring things out.

4. Initiative and Enterprise

You need to be able to think about the bigger picture and the future of the organization you’re working for. Employers will value your ability to think creatively and to make improvements to the way things are.

5. Planning and Organizing

You need to be able to organize yourself, plan project timelines and meet deadlines.

6. Self-Management

You need to be able to get on with your work without someone having to check up on you every five minutes. You should also be able to stay on top of your own deadlines and be able to delegate tasks to make sure things get done on time.

7. Learning

You should want to learn new things and be able to pick them up quickly. There are likely to be some changes to your job and to the structure of your workplace while you are working there. You should be able to take on new tasks and to meet the needs of a changing workplace.

8. Technology

Most jobs these days require you to use some form of technology.  You'll need to know how to use a computer and how to touch-type for most office jobs, but there are other types of technology that you might need to be familiar with depending on the industry you work in.

Ref: 

http://www.youthcentral.vic.gov.au/Jobs+%26+Careers/Planning+your+career/Employability+skills/

Other factors that help to make people employable include:

• knowledge and abilities relating to a particular job;
• the ability to identify suitable job opportunities;
• self-presentation (on applications and at interviews)
• external factors such as the job market and personal circumstances.