Second order Employability Skills

Jeff Landine, University of New Brunswick (jlandine@unb.ca)

John Stewart, University of New Brunswick (jstewart@unb.ca)

Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Annual Conference

Victoria, B.C., May 8, 2014

Objectives

• Comment on the deficiencies of only considering employability skills such as those suggested by the Conference Board of Canada.

• Analyze a case study for the assets and growth areas necessary for employability.

• Apply a comprehensive model to assess employability.• Acquire some new perspectives and strategies for

helping clients become more employable.

Employability Skills (narrowly defined)

• Employability skills are transferable core skill groups that represent essential functional and enabling knowledge, skills, and attitudes required by the 21st century workplace. They are necessary for career success at all levels of employment and for all levels of education (Overtoom, 2000).

• Employability Skills 2000. (Conference Board of Canada)

• 21st Century Skills for Workplace Success (USA)

Employability Skills (broadly defined)

• Psycho-social, multi-faceted, person-centered construct• Help workers to adapt (acquire, fulfill and obtain) to

work roles • Adapting makes use of a number of competencies –

attitudes, knowledge and skills.• These competencies exist on a number of hierarchical

levels: knowledge of self, world of work; decision skills, technical skills, human-relation skills, personal qualities.

Case study

• See handout

Case Study Questions

1. What personality tendencies can you assess that may influence this client's behavior?

2.  What self-constructs can you identify that may influence this client's behavior?

3. What assets (both personal and environmental) does this client bring to the job search process?

4. What roles are evident or being established at this point in her development?

Employability

• Self- regulatory, psychosocial competencies• Strategies and behaviors to achieve work goals• Strengths/capacities that are used at the person-in-

environment intersection• Second-order generally indicates an extended or higher

complexity.• Components of Employability• Career Adaptability• Human and Social Capital• Career Identity

Career Adaptability

Personal Factors:• Optimism – hope concerning the career challenge and

future• Propensity to learn – threats to jobs and opportunities

elsewhere• Openness – embrace the learning, exploration• Internal locus of control – intentional decision-making• Generalized self-efficacy – perceptions/judgements about

the ability to handle life-events

Human and Social Capital

• Human – personal resources• Includes age, education, work experience, job performance,

cognitive ability, etc.• Education and experience – best predictors• Experience – builds proficiency and tacit knowledge

(portable skills)• Investments: continuous learning and adaptive orientation

• Social – social networks• Provided information and influence to the job seeker• Strong social networks contribute support and cooperation• Span organizations and time

Career identity

• Cognitive schemas that merge together personality, knowledge, skills, aspirations, motivation, values, opportunities, etc.• Coherent narratives that frame, give meaning to and

provide continuity between past, present and future career experiences• Requires external validation• Is a self-regulative process

Employability Skills

Employability Skills

 

Career Adaptability Human and Social Capital Career Identity

Concern Control Curiosity Confidence Human Social Self Schemas

 

Optimism Desire Openness Self-efficacy Education Networks Self-efficacy

to learn Vision Experience

Intuition Locus of Control

Motivation Self-esteem

Internal Locus Roles

of Control Self-confidence

 

Planning Time manage- Thinking Ability to

Skills ment skills strategies monitor the

process

Information

Gathering

Strategies

Counselling for Adaptability

• Developing client readiness – cope with change• Focus clients to look ahead and around• Assess: planfulness, exploration of self and situation,

decision-making skills

Goals for Adaptability

• Career adaptability• Focus on outcomes• Willingness to change• Competencies need to change

• Focus on work role

Counselling for career identity

• Prepare the client for change (conditions for growth)• Facilitate reflection on work roles• Identify work and career motives• Document the clients “narrative” of career identity to self

and others

Goals for career identity

• Receptive to feedback• Confidence• Safety• Openness and interest to grow

• Acquiring a repertoire of career roles• Negotiating work-family conflicts

The career roles model: six classes of career roles.

Organizational performance domain: Exploitation - Exploration -

Dominant personal motive: production, results innovation, change

Distinction -

Autonomy/agency Maker Expert

Self-assertion

Integration -

Connectedness, belonging, Presenter Guide

cooperation, sharing

Structure -

Cohesion/meaning; Director Inspirator

institutional structure

Employability Skills 2000+

• Personal Management Skills• demonstrate positive attitudes and behaviours

confidence; feels good about self; integrity; show interest, initiative, and effort• be responsible accountable • be adaptable open to change; learn from

mistakes; accept feedback• Learn continuously curiosity• Work safely

Employability Skills 2000+

• Fundamental Skills• communicate appreciates the POV of others• manage information• use numbers• think and solve problems

Employability Skills 2000+

• Teamwork Skills• work with others• participate in projects and tasks

understand roles; lead or support