'What Employers Want' website aims to bridge skills gap

With many employers in the UK still being faced with skills shortages, the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) has developed a new website entitled 'What Employers Want', which launched on July 7th 2015.The move came after the NIACE teamed up with young people and around 40 employers - including Barclays and Topps Tiles - following statistics that showed the UK remains in the top five of OECD countries for youth unemployment.What Employers Want aims to overcome the "lack of work-readiness" barrier that many employers cite when it comes to hiring young people. It has been designed for young people and their learning providers, covering a range of practical topics, including how to complete application forms, prepare for job interviews and progress in careers.Adding their input to the website, the employers who worked with the NIACE said that young people will have a great start to their career if they have a positive attitude, key qualifications, work experience, soft skills like good communication and time-management, and strong hard skills surrounding literacy, numeracy and IT.David Hughes, chief executive of the NIACE, added: "Qualifications, a positive attitude, willingness to learn and transferable skills are important to employers but more importantly they want young people to bring fresh ideas and passion into their role."They are not expecting young people to be fully-developed and fully skilled because they recognise that young people need time and opportunities to learn and grow. In fact, most welcome the opportunity to 'shape' young people."This website should encourage learning organisations to work more directly with employers so that they can meet more young people who are 'job ready'. It's tough getting your first job, but this resource will help young people prepare themselves for a long, invigorating and successful working life."Virtual College is one of the leading providers of e-learning in the UK. Our Online Employability Suite helps learners develop the skills, qualities and attitudes needed to secure and sustain employment. For more information, please visit: http://www.virtual-college.co.uk/vcproducts/online-employability-suite.aspx