The current shift in the world online has brought about a change in how we work. Pre-pandemic, we were still going to our workplace and getting involved in activities like giving reports and updates to management. But the pandemic made us realize we have tools that enable us to carry out our jobs remotely. This change does not apply to all professions but most of them, especially if it requires a computer or an internet connection. The shift has also led to new roles that need a specific set of skills to carry out.
Some are brand new, while others are tweaked versions of existing ones. One way of identifying these roles to optimize hiring in the future and the current workflow process in the workplace is through skills taxonomy. This article will speak about this relatively unknown topic—its definition, benefits, and current place in the organization.
What is Skills Taxonomy?
It’s the act of listing, identifying, and seeking the skill set needed by an organization to drive the efficiency of its employees. The skill-based approach is a great way to match a job description to a skill set and not tie it down to just the role. A good example is if your company wants to undergo a project and HR is considering hiring a project manager. Skill taxonomy will help HR ask the right questions because they concentrate on abilities and not job roles. The HR manager can outline the skills they are looking for in a project manager and then decide what action to take after answering some of these questions.
- Do we have anyone within the company that has these skill sets?
- If they have, are they polished enough, or do they need training?
- Can we send them to courses to brush up on their ability?
- Are there people they can learn from within the organization?
Conducting skill-based hiring will allow the HR manager to search within, and if they cannot find a suitable candidate, use the same technique to search externally. This example is a simple illustration of how understanding the skill set a role brings to the table is better than looking at the job holistically. The taxonomy allows you to see the granular or individual breakdown of such a role – an effective method when matching a person to a set of skills.
Source: Nesta.org
Skills Versus Competence
Source: thepeakperformancecenter
Before we go on, we would like to differentiate between skill and competence. While both can mistakenly be interchangeable, there is a difference between both words. A skill is an ability you learn to perform your job well.
Examples of skills are welding, posting journal entries, and writing codes. Competence is the ability of an individual to complete a task brought by the person’s knowledge and behavior. It is getting the best from your skill to set yourself apart. Some examples of competence are problem-solving, analytical ability, or improving a business process.
The Past, Present, And Future Of Skills-Based Approach
In the past, we defined job roles by degrees and certifications. Which still serves us well and, still very valid today. One limitation here was not every skill needed was blatantly spelled out in the job roles. More often than none, companies assumed the person holding this job title should have the skills to handle the job. What we found out was this doesn’t apply all the time. Top grades don’t always translate to abilities. Most times, unqualified candidates get hired because of HR personnel concentrating on the school they graduated from and the titles.
Source: entrepreneur.com
Currently, there are databases you can purchase that have the breakdown of skills for most jobs, but these are not also perfect. These databases cannot predict what roles will appear in the future; they are only reactive. There are applications currently available that can help with building a database for a company. A practical approach too, but then because of the erratic nature of the recent post-pandemic labor market, this information may become obsolete quickly.
The future will look at companies taking the initiative to build a skillset-based system of their own and regularly update them according to the needs of their organizations. An example is if an oil and gas company wants to prepare for future jobs like solar panel experts or renewable energy personnel. They will need to gather the necessary data for such a role.
One effective way is to look inside their company. Over the years, they have had a lot of job ads and can start from there to draw out potential skills they will need. This activity will be continuous, taking place over several months and years. The company will add more ability sets to roles as they become more acquainted with them.
The Benefit of a Skill-Based Approach
- Improves Organisational Learning
One advantage of the skill-based approach is that it improves organizational learning by identifying gaps in the system. This approach ensures that the company can identify skills needed for it to be more efficient and effective. It may involve sending the employee for one or two training to gain the expertise for a new project or job role.
A 2018 study showed 30 percent of new hires leave a position after three months, and new hires are likely to get fired or quit two years after resuming their role. The reason organizations prefer to train current workers and equip them for a new position.
- Flexibility
This approach also improves the mobility of workers within the organization. The employees will not necessarily only get promoted vertically but can move to other departments, depending on the skill set they bring to the table. A simple example may be if an employee that serves on the bank counter is good with posting and credit management. It is possible to transfer the person within the organization and optimize the person’s skill.
This gives the company flexibility with their staff and the employees the confidence that learning new skills can create a new path in the company.
- Hiring Process
Using this approach improves the quality of your employment. Instead of hiring based on a job role, the skill-based method allows you to concentrate on the abilities you need and match them to candidates.
If you are looking for someone who can prepare a budget, is familiar with accounting software, and prepare relevant accounts. You can concentrate on these individual skills instead of stating the role of bookkeeper.
Where Can You Find Data For My Skills Taxonomy?
- Existing Organisational Skills
The first place to look at will be the existing skills your organization has already defined in the past. Using those skills can be a good start since they align with your skill goals. You can also update them to reflect modern changes and carry on from there.
- AI-based Approach
There are AI’s built to handle the skill taxonomy within an organization. Some popular companies that currently use such AI’s include IBM, SkyHive, and ReviloLabs. Artificial intelligence gathers information from job descriptions from sites like LinkedIn, job boards, and other sources. It then scans through all those jobs to define the abilities needed for such jobs. They are still a work in progress but faster than humans.
- SignalHire
SignalHire can also help you with the skills-based approach. SignalHire boasts an extensive library that detail job descriptions. The expansive database contains the requirements, responsibilities, and recommended skills to function in that role. All these data are needed to create a comprehensive data skill taxonomy for a company.
SignalHire also allows you to search using keywords. They can be a list of skillsets you want to search for or words you want in the person’s resume. An example is if you are looking for the keyword “marketing”.
You will have a list of profiles with the “marketing” tag on them. Then you can see what kind of marketing skills the profiles of potential candidates have:
What is more, as soon as you find a candidate suitable in terms of skills, you can immediately get his contacts on this platform. For example, you can browse through the Carnival Cruise employees page on SignalHire to find up-to-date contact details of specialists currently working there.
- Open-source Library
Open-source libraries like ESCO (European Skills/Competence Qualifications and Occupations) developed by the European Commission or the O*Net sponsored by the United States labor department are good choices. Both have up-to-date data and thousands of abilities you can use for your organization.
Final Word
In conclusion, the skill-based approach is a much more effective method of recruiting, promoting, and accessing the ability gaps in an organization. With more companies adopting it, it is the future of accessing roles and positions. Skill approach taxonomy will always be viable as long as new job roles come up and existing ones are modified to suit the current condition.
Image source: pixabay.com
