In addition to the 51 percent listed above, 35 percent of surveyed executives at companies that are facing a skills shortage acknowledge that they have not made a big enough investment in training in the past.
The “Accenture 2013 Skills and Employment Trends Survey: Perspectives on Training” (www.accenture.com/SkillsGap) confirmed that the skills gap remains a problem for employers—with 46 percent of executives concerned that they will not have the skills needed in their business within the next few years.
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When asked to identify ways for employees to develop new skills, 72 percent of executives pointed to training. Only 52 percent of employees working at the surveyed companies currently receive formal training from their employers. However, that number is more than double the figure from a previous Accenture survey in which only 21 percent of U.S. workers reported being formally trained by their employer between 2006 and 2011.
The consequences of not addressing the skills gap are significant, with 66 percent of those facing or anticipating a skills shortage expecting to lose business to their competitors as a result. Other concerns include loss of revenue (64 percent), eroding customer satisfaction (59 percent), and a delay in developing new products or services (53 percent). In addition, the survey found that 87 percent of companies’ existing employees are facing additional pressure and stress due to the inability to train employees with new skills or to hire workers who already possess needed skills.
“It’s clear that U.S. businesses are looking to take a more active role in solving the skills challenge, and that failing to do so can result in significant business consequences,” said David Smith, senior managing director of Accenture Talent & Organization. “Developing more effective and targeted training programs is a critical element in improving the skills of the workforce.”
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“As digital technology blurs the boundaries between formal and informal learning, companies should consider ways to strike a balance between the two and help ensure that they work in tandem,” Accenture stated. “For instance, embedding learning in everyday work—shadowing others, mentorships, or learning from peers through online forums—can help formal online or classroom training become more relevant and more effective.”
The survey also found that employers continue to use new methods to deliver employee training: mobile delivery (used by 42 percent of survey respondents), social media (35 percent), massive open online courses (MOOCs) (27 percent), and gamification (13 percent).