January 26, 2024
In this day and age, technological changes are increasing the need for new skills. When companies struggle to keep pace with these changes, a widening skills gap often happens. And that can hamper productivity and weaken overall performance.
Even the most talented employees may find it challenging to fulfil their job responsibilities effectively when they lack essential skills. That said, addressing skills gaps has become crucial for organisations aiming to maintain their long-term success.
Read on as this article explores how to conduct a skills gap analysis to assess your employees' competencies.
Skills gap analysis is a systematic approach to determining the specific skills that your workforce lacks. It basically examines the critical skills needed to achieve business goals and compares them with the current skills of your employees.
To streamline this process, using a professionally designed skills gap analysis template is highly recommended—details of which will be outlined in subsequent sections. Once these gaps are identified, you can better develop targeted strategies to address them, resulting in a more productive workforce.
However, note that skills gap analysis isn’t a done-and-dusted procedure. The business world is very dynamic, with many changes every dawn of the day; this means the skills must be reviewed regularly. This periodic review lets your company stay ahead of the changes and adapt quickly to new demands.
For the best results, key people should be involved in the analysis. This usually includes HR managers, department heads, and the employees themselves. Each group offers valuable perspectives, helping you get a clearer picture of your team’s skill set.
A 2023 Future of Jobs Report reveals that 44% of workers’ skills would be disrupted in the following five years, compared to 35% between 2016 and 2021. Thus, a skills gap analysis can help you and your company stay ahead by identifying the skills employees are lacking.
A skills gap analysis helps identify specific areas for growth, so you can create targeted training programs to help them upskill. The company then benefits through improved performance, while the employees are more satisfied and get a boost in morale. This not only addresses immediate skill deficiencies but also fosters long-term employee retention and organisational success.
Another significant advantage of a skills gap analysis is its role in strategic planning. Knowing the abilities your team members lack lets you plan knowledgeably on how to hire and train new employees. You can then make informed decisions to remain agile and adapt to emerging trends without compromising business operations.
A comprehensive skills gap analysis involves several crucial steps, such as:
Creating a skills gap analysis is more straightforward with a ready-made template. These templates usually have sections for listing key skills, assessing current abilities, pinpointing gaps, and deciding which areas to focus on.
You can certainly make your own template, but using a professionally designed one, like the free TalentLMS template, can be really helpful. Experts have crafted these templates to cover all the important details, making your analysis more thorough and reliable.
Once you have a template, identify the core skills your company needs. For example, a tech company might need skills in programming languages and cybersecurity.
Don’t forget to consider broader skills too. For instance, in a 2023 study, more than 70% of the companies surveyed mentioned creative thinking as the skill most expected to rise in importance between 2023 and 2027. Others include analytical thinking (71.6%), technological literacy (67.7%), curiosity and lifelong learning (66.8%) and AI and big data (59.9%).
After identifying the core skills, the next step is to evaluate your employees' current competencies. You can do this through performance reviews or employee assessments.
Next, compare your employees’ current skill levels to the required skills for each role. This way, you can tell what skills they lack. These are the critical gaps that need attention.
Not all skill gaps are urgent. Some may require more immediate attention, while others may wait. So, focus on closing the most critical gaps first to ensure your team can meet key objectives without delay.
Addressing skill gaps is key for businesses that want to stay competitive. By regularly conducting a skills gap analysis and following the steps we've discussed, you can spot current weaknesses and even predict future skill needs. A skills gap analysis template helps you stay ahead of the curve, so your company can quickly adapt to industry changes and be ready for whatever comes next.
