What Employers Want

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Communication skills and the work place
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REGENTS REPORTSouth Dakota Higher Education
Good Investment. Great Future. NO. 53,
10/04/96
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What Employers Want
Surveys of employers show that when making hiring
decisions businesses routinely stress skills that
are emphasized in the general education
curriculum. This helps to explain the results of
an employer survey conducted by the National
Association of Colleges and Employers. (Journal
of Career Planning Employment, Winter 1996)
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Most Desired Skills Identified by Employers(on a
scale of 1 to 5 5extremely important)

• .
• Oral Communication Skills
• 4.7
• Interpersonal Skills
• 4.6
• Teamwork Skills
• 4.5
• Analytical Skills
• 4.4
• Flexibility
• 4.3
• Written Communication Skills
• 4.2
• Leadership
• 4.2
• Proficiency in Field of Study
• 4.2
• Computer Skills
• 4.1

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Most Desired Skills Identified by Employers(on a
scale of 1 to 5 5extremely important)

• .
• Oral Communication Skills
• 4.7
• Interpersonal Skills
• 4.6
• Teamwork Skills
• 4.5
• Analytical Skills
• 4.4
• Flexibility
• 4.3
• Written Communication Skills
• 4.2
• Leadership
• 4.2
• Proficiency in Field of Study
• 4.2
• Computer Skills
• 4.1

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Skills and Qualities Which Employers Consider
Important Verbal communication
................................ 83 Responsibi
lity ........................................
.. 79 Initiative ..............................
................ .. 74 Interpersonal skills
.....................................
74 Self-discipline .........................
............... 65 Problem solving skills
.................................. 64 Decision
making ..................................... 63
Self-confidence ................................
........ 59 Written communication skills
.................... 64 High energy
......................................... 53 Le
adership .........................................
. 52 Working under pressure
................... 42 Organizational
skills .................................. 42 Me
eting the public .................................
... 37 Selling/ promoting skills
................................ 31 Appearance
........................................... 30 M
ath skills .......................................
...... 29 Research skills .....................
.................... 14 Source Report on the
Liberal Arts Employer Survey Opportunities for
the Liberal Arts Graduate. Liberal Arts Group,
Midwest College Placement Association, 1980.
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Skills and Qualities Which Employers Consider
Important Verbal communication
................................ 83 Responsibi
lity ........................................
.. 79 Initiative ..............................
................ .. 74 Interpersonal skills
.....................................
74 Self-discipline .........................
............... 65 Problem solving skills
.................................. 64 Decision
making ..................................... 63
Self-confidence ................................
........ 59 Written communication skills
.................... 64 High energy
......................................... 53 Le
adership .........................................
. 52 Working under pressure
................... 42 Organizational
skills .................................. 42 Me
eting the public .................................
... 37 Selling/ promoting skills
................................ 31 Appearance
........................................... 30 M
ath skills .......................................
...... 29 Research skills .....................
.................... 14 Source Report on the
Liberal Arts Employer Survey Opportunities for
the Liberal Arts Graduate. Liberal Arts Group,
Midwest College Placement Association, 1980.
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Table IV Items Important to Success in Middle or
Top Business Positions  
Percentage of

respondents listing item

among topItem
five Verbal
communication skills .............................
... 51 Ability to identify and formulate
problems .......... 45 Willingness to assume
responsibility ...................
43 Interpersonal skills .........................
.................... 42 Reasoning ability
................................................
38 Creativity ................................
......... .... . 27 Writing skills
................................... .
24 Ability to function independently
...................... 24 Political skills
...................................
19 Ability to speak effectively to large groups
.. 18 Listening skills .....................
........ 15
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Table IV Items Important to Success in Middle or
Top Business Positions  
Percentage of

respondents listing item

among topItem
five Verbal
communication skills .............................
... 51 Ability to identify and formulate
problems .......... 45 Willingness to assume
responsibility ...................
43 Interpersonal skills .........................
.................... 42 Reasoning ability
................................................
38 Creativity ................................
......... .... . 27 Writing skills
................................... .
24 Ability to function independently
...................... 24 Political skills
...................................
19 Ability to speak effectively to large groups
.. 18 Listening skills .....................
........ 15
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Deficiencies in Business Employees

Percentage of

respondents

listing item

among topItem

five Writing skills ...........................
....................... 56 Verbal
communication skills ............................
31 Ability to identify and formulate problems
...... 24 Willingness to listen to the opinion
of others ... 23 Ability to function
independently or with minimumsupervision
..................................................
..... 23 A developed sense of ethics and morality
.......... 18 Interpersonal skills
............................................ 16 Wi
llingness to assume responsibility
.................. 15 Ability to adapt to change
........................... 15
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Deficiencies in Business Employees

Percentage of

respondents

listing item

among topItem

five Writing skills ...........................
....................... 56 Verbal
communication skills ............................
31 Ability to identify and formulate problems
...... 24 Willingness to listen to the opinion
of others ... 23 Ability to function
independently or with minimumsupervision
..................................................
..... 23 A developed sense of ethics and morality
.......... 18 Interpersonal skills
............................................ 16 Wi
llingness to assume responsibility
.................. 15 Ability to adapt to change
........................... 15
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In the eyes of business executives looking for
skilled workers, American schools and colleges
rate a "Gentleman's C" or worse, a Conference
Board survey showed. About 41 of executives
responding think the educational institutions do
an "inadequate or poor" job of preparing students
for work, and 47 think they do only an "adequate
or fair" job at this task. Only 12 rate schools
and colleges "good or excellent" in performing
this function. The Conference Board, a private,
non-profit business research group, also
estimated that the nation's 7500 largest
companies spend more than 2 billion a year on
employee education of various sorts. Of their 32
million employees in a recent year, 3.7 million
took in-house courses during working hours, 1.3
million participated in company tuition-aid
programs, and 700,000 enrolled in company-run
courses after work, the survey showed.