By: Lori A. Jazvac | CREATIVE HORIZONS COMMUNICATIONS | RÉSUMÉS | CareerPro Conference 2015
MARKETABLE SKILLS FOR THE FUTURE
TOPICS:
What are marketable skills?
Challenges of labour market and labour market trends
Why are marketable skills essential for career growth and branding?
Benefits of gaining marketable skills in today’s labour market
Implications of gaps and skills shortages in marketable skills
Five categories of in-demand marketable skills from various sources – Breaking down
marketable skills
Marketable skills – often overlooked
The importance of developing and maintaining marketable skills in relation to your Unique
Value Proposition
Seven types of in-demand skills in today’s workforce
Strategies for developing marketable skills
Conclusive comments for professionals
Implications for career practitioners
Additional resources on marketable skills
By: Lori A. Jazvac
Certified Resume Strategist/Certified Employment Strategist
Creative Horizons Communications | Résumés
www.creativehorizonsresumes.com
creativehorizonsresumes@gmail.com
By: Lori A. Jazvac | CREATIVE HORIZONS COMMUNICATIONS | RÉSUMÉS | CareerPro Conference 2015
Marketable Skills for the Future – by Lori A. Jazvac
The world of work is changing rapidly each day with employers’ expectations continuously
growing. New graduates are facing themselves in a “catch 22” situation when applying for entry
level positions in their field. They often encounter a stumbling block of not having enough
experience for the role or needing to go back to school to further their education. Mid-level
professionals and even senior level executives are facing the need to refresh their personal career
brand and develop new skills.
What further complicates the situation is that the economy is quite volatile. Due to these
economic changes, the types of jobs and skills that are marketable will evolve as well.
 Jobs in science, IT and data analytics, engineering, and technology are becoming
increasingly important to today’s business growth and innovation.
 However, technology from years ago is becoming somewhat outdated. Therefore, this
technology may no longer prove to remain marketable as newer technology skill sets are
required to compete with changing industry demands.
 Health care in demand more than ever as aging baby boomers face retirement.
 Administrative jobs are being replaced by automated systems.
 Skilled trades are more in demand in the manufacturing sector. Professionals with
advanced mechanical and technical expertise are needed.
 Education is becoming more innovative as students are relying on virtual learning to
upgrade their skills.
 Creative culinary skills are in high demand, especially among temporary foreign workers.
 Because of rising real estate prices, people are faced with debt, which signals a need for
professionals with financial expertise.
Marketable Skills: Essential for Success
But developing new skills is not enough. What is needed today in this competitive job market is
having “marketable skills”. An improved alignment of skills with market demands will continue
to build future prosperity and a more productive labour force, thus adding more value to the
economy. The Hamilton Spectator reported (2011), skill shortages were evident in health care,
skilled trades, and information and communications technology, which were largely attributed to
stagnant growth in productivity. The skills shortage reported in 2013, costing the Ontario
economy a staggering $24.3 billion.
According to Finance & Career, there are five categories of marketable skills that are essential
for success today: Communication, Research and Planning, Human Relations, Organization,
Management and Leadership, and Work Survival.
Communication
Research & Planning
Organization,
Management, and Leadership
MARKETABLE SKILLS
Work Survival
Human Relations
By: Lori A. Jazvac | CREATIVE HORIZONS COMMUNICATIONS | RÉSUMÉS | CareerPro Conference 2015
Five Categories of Marketable Skills
Each of these categories can be broken down further to embody separate and distinct skills.
Communication – strong reading and listening skills in both small and large groups and in oneto-one conversation is imperative, especially when conducting presentations. Communication
also includes electronic communication, as well as understanding how to navigate social
networking sites and communicate.
Research & Planning – identifying and solving problems; gathering and synthesizing relevant
information via Internet; planning potential solutions; evaluating outcome of research.
Human Relations – conveying support and sensitivity; establishing connections with others.
Organization, Management & Leadership – coordinating groups and projects; marketing new
ideas and products; organizing people, processes, and procedures; prioritizing work goals.
Work Survival Skills – coping with daily situations, challenges, and stresses on the job. This
includes decision making, enforcing workplace policies, time management, punctuality, and
accepting responsibility. In fact, work survival skills are considered to be one of the most
important skills for getting ahead. Essentially, this means that if you lack this vital skill, the other
skills will reflect a gap.
Other Critical Marketable Skills – Often Overlooked
Solid Work Ethic – Having a passion for your work translates into presenting yourself in a
favourable light and going the extra mile despite challenges. Exhibiting the right attitude towards
work is crucial to success. Employing team collaboration and getting the job done despite
obstacles or challenges are imperative to organizational success and team success.
Computer Literacy – Keeping up to date with the latest changing computer technology and
applications will enable you to leverage better problem solving among virtual teams to achieve
strategic goals.
The Importance of Developing and Maintaining Marketable Skills
By refining your existing skills and learning new skills that are marketable, you will gain a
competitive edge and enhance your personal career brand. Focusing on developing a set of
marketable skills ensures growth and survival in your career. It also helps you to keep your skills
fresh and updated with changing developments and trends in the labour market as well as within
you particular niche. Marketable skills translate to remaining employable and advancing ahead
while mitigating potential career related obstacles.
While there are often fewer jobs than applications, retaining marketable skills allows you to
differentiate yourself from the competition and showcase your “Unique Value Proposition.”
Closely examine your acquired marketable skills and then market these skills through
networking and a professional résumé. If you are prepared to move on to a new career,
developing fresh marketable skills will put you ahead of other candidates. You can increase your
marketability by keeping updated with computer and communication technology as well as
critical skills such as analytics and writing.
By: Lori A. Jazvac | CREATIVE HORIZONS COMMUNICATIONS | RÉSUMÉS | CareerPro Conference 2015
Marketable skills are not difficult to develop, but take effort and are an ongoing progress.
Develop marketable skills through both informal and formal in-house training, internships,
volunteering, community leadership roles, and education. Network with other professionals to
stay abreast of new market developments, field related skills, and labour trends.
Remember to not procrastinate with developing and refining marketable skills. Otherwise, you
may slow down the progression of your career growth, career brand, and skill development.
A report by the Institute for the Future (IFTF), along with information by the Missouri P-20
Council and Bureau of Labor Statistics outlines a list of seven critical skills for future
professionals to remain competitive in the workforce:
1. Socially intelligent –The ability to understand others, get along well with those around you,
and act and react appropriately in various situations is essential in today’s workplace. This will
enhance your likelihood of forging strong relationships, which will be a valuable asset in
advancing your career growth.
2. Adaptable – Employees have to adjust to a myriad of significant changes, technological or
otherwise. Employees must be able to gauge their behaviors and work performance aligned with
these changes.
3. Ability to work on a virtual team – Completing projects with team members remotely from
other locations may be critical in projects in order to save time and money. Virtual team
members should be able to clearly communicate expectations and foster a social environment
that spells collaboration and cooperation.
4. Bilingual or multilingual – Because globalization is more prevalent than ever, more
businesses will expand their operations overseas. Knowing a second or third language such
as French or Spanish, can set you apart from future competition with enhanced communication
abilities. Bilingual roles often lead to an increase in salary by at least $10K annually.
5. Cross-culturally adept – Professionals need to be able to learn and adapt to different cultural
norms and embrace a diverse multicultural work environment. This will require reliable
professionals well-versed in interpreting multicultural norms in order to represent the
company on a professional level and meet customer needs. Being cross-culturally adept helps
professionals to stay creative by bouncing ideas off each other in order to remain competitive.
6. Multidisciplinary – Workplace projects and problems are complex. For instance, today’s
health care professional needs to possess medical knowledge, but also know how to use
advanced medical machinery and computer software. Therefore, possessing skills and knowledge
in more than one subject area will become increasingly important in every field.
7. Analytical – Research skills will become paramount, especially in the next decade through
leveraging ‘big data.’ Analyzing the relevant implications of big data will be even more crucial
to identifying how ‘big data’ impacts the strategic objectives of the organization, including
employee performance and customer satisfaction.
By: Lori A. Jazvac | CREATIVE HORIZONS COMMUNICATIONS | RÉSUMÉS | CareerPro Conference 2015
Conclusion
There is much information on what constitutes a marketable skill in different fields. The key is to
assess the gap between the skills that you possess and the ones that you need to develop.
Consider whether your present skill set will be marketable within the next year or even five
years. What strategies can you employ to keep enhancing your marketable skills in innovative or
non-traditional ways? Continually refine your marketable skills in order to sustain a competitive
brand. Improve the skills that are somewhat challenging to develop. Marketable skill
development is essential to improving the economy and job prospects, thus, paving the way for
growth-filled opportunities.
Implications for Career Practitioners:
 Work with clients to help them identify and evaluate the marketable skills that they possess,
those that require improvement, and how these skills positively impact their career growth.
 Devise a concrete plan for developing and sustaining those marketable skills; set realistic
goals and timeframes and provide valuable resources. i.e. seminars, continuing education,
volunteering, community leadership, internships, networking, and work projects.
 Keep updated on various labour market trends and their impact on marketable skill
development for clients. This will help you to educate and inform clients on recent career and
industry related developments and what skills are needed in certain fields.
 Identifying marketable skills also translates into strengths and articulating the ‘Unique Value
Proposition’ – what sets candidates apart from the rest.
 Discuss situations with clients where those marketable skills have been used. This will be
effective in customizing the résumé as a valuable marketing tool with high impact
achievements.
 Helping your clients to communicate marketable skills through interview coaching will
enhance their success in interviews.
Additional Resources on Marketable Skills:
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www.facebook.com/notes/jobs/seven-secrets-for-building-marketableskills/10150293043216338
www.careerkey.org/choose-a-career/strengthen-marketable-skills.html#.VcKftN7bLIU
www.dailybulletin.com/business/20140501/degrees-are-great-but-you-need-marketableskills-to-get-a-job
www.workopolis.com/content/advice/article/career-trending-where-the-jobs-will-bethrough-2020-and-beyond
www.skillsyouneed.com/general/employability-skills.html
Lori Jazvac is an active member of Career Professionals of Canada and a Certified Résumé
Strategist/Employment Strategist with Creative Horizons Communications | Résumés.
For more information on ‘Marketable Skills for the Future’ or crafting a results-based résumé,
consult Lori Jazvac via email creativehorizonsresumes@gmail.com.