Employees are having to take on more responsibility as a result of both a skills and labour shortage in their organisations, a new report has found.
Skills Consulting Group's (SCG) Future of Work report also found the situation has been further impacted by Covid-19 and other sicknesses, with many people having to take time off work.
"We know that burnout is the number one issue faced by employees," says SCG director, Gwyn Thomas. "This creates an interesting tension where many people are having to take on extra responsibility at work – yet are already feeling burned out with their current workload."
The findings - which came from a survey of 1448 New Zealand-based workers and 101 Kiwi businesses in SCG's Future of Work Report 2022 - revealed 75 per cent of businesses are experiencing talent shortages.
Despite this, Thomas says employers are missing out by not seeing what's right in front of them as many employees are keen to upskill and ready to learn.
"There's a stark skills gap presenting itself," he says. "Our research has highlighted a divide in what organisations are offering compared to what their people actually want – and what will retain them working within the organisation – in terms of training and development."
The research - conducted for SCG by The Research Agency (TRA) - shows there is a strong desire to learn transferrable skills at work; 47 per cent of employees saying they want problem solving skills, 43 per cent leadership skills and 42 per cent keen to upskill in team management and critical thinking.
But, Thomas says, employers are missing out on the value that's already in front of them by not offering training on transferrable skills, with only 19 per cent offering problem solving, 24 per cent leadership, 25 per cent team management and just 14 per cent critical thinking.
"To achieve business success, it's crucial that organisations start offering a robust learning and development programme covering these human-centric skills, to retain employees, maintain productivity and ensure they have future-proofed their organisation," he says.
"The good news is that training that focuses on critical thinking and problem solving develops transferable skills.
"This gap between what employees want and what employers offer needs to be closed. As the report shows the more satisfied an employee is at work, the more likely they are to stay, and be more motivated. Training is one of the key ways an employer can show an employee they are valued.
"There's a need for better training around transferrable skills for employees – and if approached correctly, this will lead to a more resilient workforce."
The Smart Skills Gap, the first of four sub-reports, offers advice to business leaders who want to improve the situation, is available and is available free to download.
Skills Consulting Group have dedicated consultants who can provide tailored training and advice to your organisation. To find out how SCG can support you to future-proof your business go to: www.skillsconsultinggroup.com