Work Ethic Skills Gap: vs. An Explanation of the Challenge

BY dENNIS BONA

Having worked on the front lines of workforce development for the past 35 years, I’m delighted to have the opportunity to weigh in on what has become a routine debate among business leaders and educators over the most difficult challenges we face regarding our current workforce.

The most common frame is that workers are often characterized by employers in three ways. The first assertion is that today’s workers are simply lacking the skills required for the complex tasks associated with a contemporary high-tech work environment. When pressed for more specifics by educators, who are often flagged as the root cause for workers lacking skills, employers will typically identify skills more closely associated with work ethic. So the second assertion is that employers can’t find employees who are dependable, punctual, follow direction, exert reasonable effort or demonstrate loyalty. Unfortunately, the third and most difficult assertion to deal with is issues of substance abuse, criminal history, illiteracy and mental health. The more enlightened realize that the latter of the three assertions has a root cause based in societal issues and will require solutions that employ a strategy that “takes a village, and then some...”

So the rest of my commentary will focus on the first two, which in my analysis are complex, intertwined, misunderstood and often misdiagnosed. I must also qualify my remarks with the admission that I have no scientific data or research to back up my analysis. Everything I conclude is based solely on conducting hundreds of advisory meetings, employer interviews, faculty and program evaluations. I have also experienced countless interactions with students, many of whom are incumbent workers, who were more than willing to express the challenges they face on a daily basis at school and work.

Enough background, here’s the point. All of the descriptors mentioned in the first two assertions are made with varying degrees of intensity and I’ve noticed it to be directly proportional to how progressive the employer is with respect to his or her effectiveness in managing the workforce. Perhaps it’s simply common sense to propose that employees respond to management excellence with higher levels of skill and work ethic, but my experience suggests it’s true. I’ll go further and say that the very same is true for students in the classroom, and for that I do have the scientific evidence to support my theory. It’s routinely proven that great teachers produce amazing students. Continuing with that premise, great employers don’t face the same level of concerns with work ethics and skills gaps that marginal employers face.

My comments are not meant to suggest that education should be off the hook, nor do I deny the challenges associated with our current workforce. We are working diligently in all of education to increase student learning, particularly in the cognitive areas of problem solving, creativity, communication and decision making — all areas that legitimately need more attention, focused on developing lifelong learners that have the capacity to evolve with the needs of business and industry, both technically and interpersonally.

Education definitely has a major role in combating the challenges of today’s workforce and I respectfully request employers recognize that they must contribute as well. We will not be successful in developing strategies that advance the workforce of the future without both entities first admitting where they fall down, then working together to achieve the desired outcome.

PB