Driving Competitiveness by Closing Skills Gaps – Over Half of Employers Need External Help

Written by NTUC LearningHub

75% of employers see the importance of carrying out regular training needs analysis for their workforce to drive the competitiveness of their business.
55% of employers agree that they need external help to assess the skills gaps of their employees.
52% of employers believe that external assessments provide reliable and more accurate results.

SINGAPORE - Media OutReach ^[1] - 6 May 2021 - To remain competitive in Singapore's recovering economy, three- quarters (75%) of employers in Singapore see the importance of carrying out regular training needs analysis for their workforce to drive the competitiveness of their business. However, more than half of them (55%) say they need external help to assess the skills gaps of their employees, alluding that more help is needed by companies to carry out effective skills mapping and learning, and development strategies.

These are some of the key findings in the recent NTUC LearningHub (NTUC LHUB)'s Employer Skills Survey report. The survey, which was conducted in February 2021 with business leaders across Singapore, aimed to uncover the most in-demand skillsets a year post-pandemic. The findings include the top skills by industry clusters: Built Environment, Essential Domestic Services, Lifestyle, Manufacturing and Professional Services, and Trade and Connectivity.

In addition, when asked if getting their employees' capabilities assessed by an external consultant would yield a more accurate and actionable result compared to it being done internally, 52% of the respondents agreed or strongly agreed, while 30% were neutral, 14% disagreed and only 6% strongly disagreed.

Commenting on the findings, NTUC LHUB's Director of Institute of Business Excellence and Healthcare Academy, Jenaline Low, says, "With the evolving market demands and diversity across different sectors, learning can no longer be delivered through a 'cookie cutter' approach. We have observed that as much as companies are investing time and resources into training and upskilling their workforces, many of them still require help in their skills competency mapping and training needs analysis."

"At NTUC LHUB, we offer companies advisory services to support for their specific learning needs. Working hand-in-hand with companies, we help them to be better poised to capture new business opportunities through workforce redesign for job expansion and enlargement. This is then supported by training needs analysis to re-skill and upskill through customised training solution design and delivery, and with back-end support such as funding and claims administration."

To download the Employers Skills Report 2021, visit https://www.ntuclearninghub.com/employer-skills-report-2021/^[2].