This is going to be my starting point.
What employers want from employees is more than technical competence evidenced in a qualification. What these employability skills are is complicated by four challenges:
1. The sheer range of training, the levels of entry supported and employment opportunities supported by FE means that no one pattern has been agreed to follow
2. Because of the range there are as many skills needed as there are opinions consulted.
3. It isn’t clear if there should be a generic set that demonstrate adaptability or can be applied to all employment or specific lists for each vocation or a combination of the two.
Many of these skills are ‘soft’, (presentability, socially skilled, able to react positively to criticism sociability etc.) and have been difficult to carry into a qualification.
4. Because the nature of work is constantly changing the skills list is changing and the emerging skills are in demand. This includes digital literacy and the development of a positive digital reputation. Entrepreneurial-ship is another strong arrival and it will be interesting to see ow technology can accommodate that.
This is such an interesting field of study because of the range of level of ability and diversity of subjects to consider; from Accountancy to Blacksmithing, to Cake Decorating,and that is just the first three letters of the alphabet.
What technology has to offer fits into two broad areas:
1. The ability to discover, capture, store skills and
2. The ability to marshal, reformat and present them to an audience, whether that is a prospective employer anywhere in the world, or clients in the case of self-employment.