In their epochal paper “Are They Really Ready to Work?”, Linda Barrington and Jill Casner-Lotto discuss the difference between basic knowledge and applied skills, and emphasize the importance of excellent professional skills in the workplace of the XXI century. The theme of important professional skills is also developed by Richard Miller in his speech to engineering students at Olin College where he stresses the importance of communication skills as opposed to technical knowledge. With regards to these arguments, the issue of the value of applied skills in the future is raised. In the following paper, this issue will be discussed in the light of latest findings by respectful specialists in this field. Overall, the evaluation of the available information regarding the workplace of the future and the skills that will be important in the new era suggests a conclusion that the position established by Barrington and Casner-Lotto regarding the critical importance of applied skills is justified and valid.
First, to argue about the significance of applied skills in the workplace of the future, it is important to understand what the specialists who introduced this term in their paper meant by it. To understand it, the main points about their paper need to be addressed. In their paper, Barrington and Casner-Lotto examine the results of employers’ surveys to make their conclusions regarding the skills that will become critically important for professionals in the XXI century workplaces. The result of their research study indicates the importance of such valuable skills as:
- Oral Communications skills that include the ability to have effective public speaking skills, and articulate thoughts and ideas clearly;
- Written Communications skills that include the ability to write letters, reports, and memos, and to do so clearly and intelligibly;
- Teamwork/Collaboration skills that include the ability to negotiate with different individual and teams including clients and workmates, develop excellent collaborative relationships with clients and business colleagues; and manage conflicts;
- Diversity skills that include collaborating and exchanging experience with partners from different cultures and backgrounds (gender, religion, age, beliefs, races);
- Information Technology Application skills that include the ability to find and apply technology required for fulfilling the given task;
- Leadership skills that include ability to assist others in achieving common goals and acquiring a better level of proficiency;
- Creativity/Innovation skills that include the ability to show inventiveness and originality, develop new concepts strategies and ideas, and integrate knowledge received from different sources and educational disciplines;
- Lifelong Learning skills that include the ability to improve one’s professionalism on a regular basis and learn from one’s mistakes;
- Professionalism/Work Ethic skills that include the ability to be responsible, punctual, and productive in one’s work; and finally,
- Social Responsibility skills that include the ability to demonstrate excellent knowledge of social ethics and to apply this knowledge in practice in the relationships with all the business partners (Barrington and Casner-Lotto 51-53).
The above-mentioned skilled are called “applied skills” by Barrington and Casner-Lotto.
Next, it is essential to state that the argument that Barrington and Casner-Lotto have in their work is valid and justified which is supported by the findings of the other respectful specialists. In their paper, Barrington and Casner-Lotto discuss many evidences that leave no space for a doubt about the value of applied skills in the future. They quote numerous governmental specialists on economics and business owners, and comment on the significance of their sayings (Barrington and Casner-Lotto 51, 53, 59, 61). They also address a number of particular examples from real life situations that prove how critically important applied skills are even nowadays. Thus, their argument is beyond any efforts to confute it.
Further, Miller’s position, stated in his speech, is another support of the significance of applied skills. Although the author does not use the term ‘applied skills’ itself, he speaks about the skills that constitute the notion of this term. Mainly, he argues that communication skills are even more important than technical ones during the new era of business relations (Miller 1). He explains the relevance of his position supporting it by the statements of prosperous business owners who believe that today nothing is so important for an employee as the ability to speak publicly in a clear and effective way, and communicate one’s thoughts in a written form by means of letters, reports, and memos.
In addition, Barrington and Casner-Lotto’s vision of applied skills finds its numerous reflections in the sayings by the other outstanding specialists of labor market. In their article “Developing Professional Skills. No Quick Fix?”, Sandhya Nankani and Holly Ojalvo evaluate the statements by key specialists of labor market in the United States. Step by step, they create the picture of inevitable importance of professional skills such as excellent written and oral communication, the ability to collaborate in diversified collective bodies, the ability to negotiate and solve conflicts, and the ability to use modern information technologies (Nankani and Ojalvo 8).
Finally, critically reflecting on the findings by all the above-mentioned authors, it becomes evident that the XXI century workplace is a ‘temple’ where the ‘applied skills religion’ is practiced. This is so because nowadays, all the other skills are set aside when an individual is not able to communicate his or her ideas to one’s colleagues, has no relevant skills for conflict resolving, and is not able to find a wise and reasonable approach to customers. Besides, the new era is the era of globalization which sets the new rules for ‘play’ in the new society full of diversity. The times, when a workplace was a place where employees and customers from the same culture and even gender (male one) were the only participants of the business process, are in the past. Today, collective bodies are diversified, there is an abundance of women occupying different positions including managers’ positions as well, there is also an abundance of people from different races and cultures, people with different religious beliefs and principles, etc. All of that crates a special need for a contemporary employee to be able not only to cooperate with one’s colleagues in such new conditions, but also to learn from them and expand one’s scope of vision. Thus, in my opinion, there is no other opportunity for an employee of the future to succeed, but to have excellent applied skills.
In conclusion, it should be stated that the review of a wide scope of opinions by the modern-day labor market specialists shows that the future notion of ‘professionalism ‘ is closely connected to the notion of ‘applied skills introduced by Barrington and Casner-Lotto in their epoch-making paper “Are They Really Ready to Work?”. Thus, the value of applied skills in the XXI century workplace is critical.
References
Barrington, Linda, and Jill Casner-Lotto. “Are They Really Ready to Work?” Journal of Business Strategy (2006):1-60. Print.
Miller, Richard. “The Speech to Engineering Students”. Olin College (n. d.): 1-12. Print.
Nankani, Sandhya, and Holly Ojalvo. “Developing Professional Skills. No Quick Fix?” The New York Times (2010): 7-12. Print.