How to identify and close skills gaps

3. What can companies do to identify and close the growing skills gap?

1. Conduct skills assessments

To begin identifying skills gaps, you need to assess the current skill set of your team. This can be done in a number of ways, including:

a) Self-assessment surveys

One effective approach is to have team members evaluate their own skills. Provide them with a survey that asks about their expertise in various areas of your business. 

For example, if there are important software and tools being utilised in your organisation, you can ask your employees how effectively they are using it or if they are lacking any gaps in their knowledge to do their job more productively. 

Providing feedback surveys gives your team members the opportunity to express where they feel they need further development. For business leaders and managers, this also fosters visibility into workforce needs and capabilities, allowing them to find actionable strategies for what critical skills need to be developed further. 

b) Performance reviews

Performance reviews are a valuable tool for gauging employee skills. If you’re conducting regular evaluations, whether that’s a monthly or quarterly check-in, make sure to include specific questions about skills and areas for improvement. 

These reviews provide an opportunity to touch base with employees and give managers a chance to assess whether employees are meeting expectations in terms of skill development.

c) Peer feedback

In addition to self-assessment and performance reviews, gathering feedback from colleagues is invaluable. Sometimes, employees have a clearer understanding of their peers’ strengths and weaknesses than managers do. 

If a group of employees have been working together with a certain co-worker on an important project such as a marketing campaign or website development for a long period of time, it’s likely that they will have insights into how that person works and collaborates within a team. 

Hence, peer reviews can help highlight hidden gaps or areas where individuals may not be as strong, helping business leaders to implement a plan on tackling critical skills areas.

d) Skills matrix

A skills matrix is a visual framework used to map and analyse the skills and competencies of a team or organisation. It provides a clear overview of the current skills available and highlights any gaps that need to be addressed. Organisational leaders can use it in workforce planning, training, and development to ensure that the right skills are in place to meet business objectives.

Key components of a skills matrix:

1. Individuals or roles: Rows usually represent team members or specific roles within the organisation.
2. Skills or competencies: Columns list the required skills or competencies for the role or project.
3. Proficiency levels: A rating system (e.g., beginner, intermediate, advanced) or numerical scale indicates the level of expertise for each skill.
4. Gap analysis: By comparing the required skills to current proficiencies, the matrix identifies areas where training or upskilling is needed.

A skills matrix is a great way to visually track where each employee stands in relation to the skills needed. Moreover, it gives you an overview of the team’s collective strengths and where improvements might need to be made.