The Human Resource Manager, Phillips Consulting Limited, Ms. Adetokunbo Agbede, talks about relevant skills that job applicants need and errors to avoid in their curricula vitae, in this interview with Ife Adedapo
What are the skills that have been observed to be lacking among Nigerian graduates?
Employable skills are fundamental requirements for fresh graduates. A good attitude and communication skills are needed. Technical skills and subject-related skills are also important but they however differ from industry to industry. With reference to the Phillips Consulting Education & Employability survey report released in March this year, there were significant findings by employers in recruiting fresh graduates. I will also like to mention that the Phillips Consulting Surveys are released every quarter.
According to the findings in our survey report, employers rate teamwork and interpersonal skills, effective verbal communication, the ability to think critically and analytically as very important skills required to get hired. Others mentioned are computer skills business writing skills, business awareness and entrepreneurial skills amongst others. The view of graduates captured in the report on which skills are deemed employable were largely in sync with what employers also require.
According to the report, 60 per cent of employers agree that graduates have employable skills however less than 25 per cent of employers were ‘very satisfied’ with the skills of the graduates employed. This indicates that there is a dearth of employable skills amongst Nigerian graduates. There seems to be a gap between what they have learnt in school and what employers expect from them at the workplace. This largely has led to the emergence of some graduate employability centres whose function is to help groom fresh graduates to develop these skills which would make them become suitable for employment. As an employer of labour, Phillips Consulting has a very rigorous recruitment process.
What can graduates do to be more employable?
Develop generic skills that are relevant in the workplace and also in the industry. Graduates have a responsibility to continuously develop themselves. Skills set such as problem-solving, creative thinking, communication, presentation, business writing etc have been known to make the difference between employable and non-employable graduates.
Depending on the kind of recruitment processes an organisation embarks on, at Phillips consulting, we have a very robust recruitment process that helps us to look out for competencies that we desire. This is because when we hire, we don’t do so for skills alone but also for behaviour. Candidates need to have the right kind of skill set and attitude.
What are the common mistakes applicants make in their curricula vitae?
The first thing to note is that your CVrepresents you as a candidate or applicant. Anyone will want to avoid being misrepresented, therefore, it is essential to get the CV right. Common mistakes people make include; making the CV too lengthy or having too many pages, making spelling mistakes and grammatical errors, not properly organising information, not highlighting achievements, not updating contact details coupled with not tailoring the CV to suit the job sought and so on. The work history, skills and qualifications should be updated regularly
Is the idea of embedding entrepreneurship in workplaces feasible in Nigeria?
Yes. Entrepreneurship begins with the right mindset. The youth should have a strong sense of ownership in their approach to work. An employee with the right attitude who sees the job as a calling and not just a job executes his or her duties with passion which transcends the contractual agreement the employee has with the employer. The employee who is so engaged has a covenantal relationship with the job. This is also a skill that organisations should build deliberately. There are different ways in which this can be achieved for example, embedding it in the culture of the organisation.
For individuals who love travelling, what kind of employment would you advise them to seek?
It actually depends on the demands of the job. For instance, employees in core consulting may be required to travel to off-site locations especially, those in global organisations with multiple offices; it may require a HR to move from one location to the other.
You can be in a particular industry and not travel and someone can be in the same company and will travel so much. Different jobs regardless of the industry require varying degrees of job- related travel. However, some jobs, more than others, require lots of travel for example, the flight crew in the aviation industry travel all the time. Also, consultants travel a lot due to out-of-station assignments.
How effective has the ‘shortlist’ platform been in getting candidates that fit into job descriptions?
We have actually recorded success rates and employers are calling back because we communicate with them every week. The feedback from the employers has been satisfactory because they have been waiting for a platform like this to source for candidates. Not every employer can get a top recruiter for recruitment purposes. It is a do-it-yourself platform that simplifies the process of shortlisting candidates for them. The main idea for the initiative is to build relationship between candidates and the employers before they get in contact with each other. It is what the employer types in as a search for competent candidate that will come out.
As an employer, you identify basic skills based on the competencies set up. You contact me as the candidate and then you send me a direct message saying I am interested in what you have to offer, would you like to work with me?
Afterwards, the candidate goes through the company or the employers’ profile and if he or she likes it, he or she agrees to it. When that is done, the employer can get access to the candidate through his or her phone number or email. Thus the employer can view the candidate and can access their information directly.
The platform will drive Nigerians to be more competent thereby helping those who have not developed their skills in a particular area. The platform in the long run will be able to educate candidates by offering courses that will empower them.
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