The talent gap is one of the biggest challenges facing businesses today. The EU Digital Decade policy set out to ensure 80% of working age Europeans have basic digital skills by 2030. So far, the EU is at 54%. Digital skills are needed across an increasing variety of occupations, making the battle for talent even more fierce. This means companies must have a clear value proposition to potential employees, including tools for continual learning.
IBM fully shares the overall goals of the 2023 European Year of Skills – tackling skills shortages by increasing the talent pool, better matching workers’ aspirations with the skills needed in the labour market, and equipping people to grasp the opportunities of the digital and green transitions.
IBM has recently released the Digital Skills playbook for industry and policy recommendations for the EU and member states to help drive the change needed for today’s – and most importantly, future – workforce.
To make progress and embrace continuous learning, a change of mindset is needed. That’s why IBM is investing in the future of work with a holistic approach that ensures its employees are on a continual learning path, fosters access to education and training for job seekers and creates a more diverse pipeline of talent. EU institutions and national governments have a crucial role in setting the right framework, and businesses also have a responsibility.
In the U.S., IBM takes a skills-first approach to hiring by looking at people’s skills and ability to learn rather than only their formal qualifications. This expands opportunities for well-paying and rewarding jobs to more people. It also helps create a more diverse workforce, fueling innovation as people with different backgrounds bring different ideas to the company.
The Digital Skills Playbook for the EU explains IBM’s talent strategy, how IBM builds pathways for disadvantaged groups, and how the company is working with its business partners to close the skills gap. The playbook also lays out IBM’s five main policy recommendations including promoting skills-based hiring, expanding education and training pathways to in-demand jobs, and making it easier to transfer digital learning credits between EU countries.
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