TalentLMS just released a report that points out a rising issue for companies: it’s not a scarcity of talent, but rather, a lack of insight into the skills that employees already have. Their most recent Skills Visibility Report states that a lot of businesses don’t even see the potential of their own people which then causes hiring, development, and workforce planning to be not very effective.
More than 1,500 U.S. employees and managers that took part in the study showed that only 12% of organizations claim that they do not have any issues with skills visibility. Surprisingly, half of the respondents state that their companies very often hire externally for skills that are available internally, revealing a lack of connection between talent availability and awareness.
The report points out 3 main causes behind the issue. For one, the perception gap is such that on one hand, 90% of managers think they know their teams’ skills, and on the other hand, only 69% of employees agree. A development gap, perhaps the same kind of mismatch just in different words, with 90% of managers saying supporting skill growth whereas only 60% of employees feel supported. Also, a utilization gap means that while 75% of managers believe that skills are used to their full potential, close to half of the employees say that their skills are not being utilized adequately.
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“The gap isn’t skills—it’s visibility into them,” said Dimitris Tsingos, CEO of Epignosis, parent company of TalentLMS. “Companies are rich in talent but poor in insight. Organizations need a clear view not just of employees’ existing skills but also of their foundational knowledge, which is becoming increasingly important in the age of AI. Those that build that clarity gain speed, make smarter decisions, and unlock the full value of their workforce.”
The repercussions are quite serious. More than 50% of workers say the skills they have been denied have held back their career progress, and about 30% of workers are planning on quitting if their employers continue to not offer them any kind of development opportunities. Apart from that, quite a number of employees would find it more convenient to simply change jobs rather than switching roles within the same company.
Though there are these difficulties, a revolt of structured solutions so far is a mere handful. Only 18% of companies use the centralized systems to log skills most still depending on performance review and manager’s watch. The report indicates that regular skill assessment and a higher level of training of managers will enable organizations to exploit fully the potential of the human resources they already have.
