1. Generic skills that enable our technical skills
Employability Skills
Generic skills that enable our technical skills

2. Planning and organizing Initiative and enterprise
A group of industry representatives agreed that we need some general skills in the work place to help complete work based activities effectively. These skills can be used in different work settings and job roles and are sometimes referred to as soft skills. These eight skills are:
Communication
Planning and organizing
Teamwork
Problem solving
Initiative and enterprise
Self-management
Technology
Learning
Discussion
What are technical skills?
What are soft/employability skills?

3. Communication
Discussion
How do we communicate?
… that contributes to productive and harmonious relations in the workplace
Communication includes reading, writing, speaking, listening and numeracy.

4. Health and safety manuals
Reading
Some things we might read in a workplace… s
Customer orders
Work instructions
Labels
Reports
Health and safety manuals
Memos
Policies & procedures
Questions:
What do you read when you:
Volunteer?
Coach a team?
Care for a family member?
Manage your money?
Play sport in a team?
What other roles do you have?
What do you read in that role?

5. Writing Some things we might write in the workplace … Notes
Customer orders s
Lists
Reports
Letters
Memos
Work Sheets
Questions:
What do you write when you:
Volunteer?
Coach a team?
Care for a family member?
Manage your money?
Play sport in a team?
What other roles do you have?
What do you write in that role?

6. Speaking Some things we may to say in the workplace … Pass on messages
Give Instructions
Use workplace language
Negotiate
Manage customer complaints
Empathise
Use the telephone to give & receive information
Provide information about a product
Questions:
What do you say when you:
Volunteer?
Coach a team?
Care for a family member?
Manage your money?
Play sport in a team?
What other roles do you have?
What do you say in that role?
Activity: Back-to-back Lego (Giving instructions)
Pair people up and get them to sit back to back
Give each person a matching set of lego/duplo blocks
Ask one to create a shape and then describe the shape to their partner who has to create the same shape
Has the other person understood your instructions? If not, discuss why
Reverse roles and repeat

7. Understand workplace language
Listening
To Instructions
Customer Orders
Customer Complaints
To People’s Needs
Information
Understand workplace language
Questions:
What do you hear when you:
Volunteer?
Coach a team?
Care for a family member?
Manage your money?
Play sport in a team?
What other roles do you have?
What do you hear in that role?
Activity: Back-to-back Lego (understanding instructions)

8. Solving mathematical problems
Numeracy
Solving mathematical problems
Measuring
Graphs
Prioritising
Time keeping
Recording data
Questions:
How do you use numbers when you:
Volunteer?
Coach a team?
Care for a family member?
Manage your money?
Play sport in a team?
What other roles do you have?
How d you use numbers in that role?

9. Team Work
… that contributes to productive working relationships and outcomes

10. Examples Working with new workers/mentoring or coaching
Providing feedback
Sharing ideas/brainstorming
Working together to complete a task
Understanding your role in a team
Working with people irrespective of their gender, race, religion or political persuasion
It was Jan’s birthday. The people in the office decided to get her a present. We discussed what we thought she would like and how much we each would contribute. We agreed that Marie should buy the present and a card which we could all sign.
Discussion
Did we use other employability skills to achieve this outcome?
Do you think employability skills overlap?

11. Problem Solving
… that contributes to productive outcomes

12. Examples Developing creative, innovative and practical solutions
Showing independence and initiative in identifying and solving problems
Working with other people to solve problems – getting feedback from others, brainstorming solutions, designating roles
Using a number of different ideas to solve problems – if this doesn’t work, what can I try next?
Using mathematics to solve problems – what do I need to do first, how many do I need, how much time do I have to fix this?
Discussion
Ask class to think of examples of how/when they have problem solved

13. Initiative & Enterprise
… that contributes to innovative outcomes

14. Examples Adapting to new situations Being creative Assessing risks
Translating ideas into actions
Identifying a range of options
Identifying opportunities
Developing a long term, strategic vision
Activity:
Watch Mark Wardle’s video Employability Skills: Initiative & Enterprise
Discuss with group

15. Planning & Organising
… that contributes to long and short term strategic planning

16. Examples Planning a holiday Planning an event
Researching and organising information
Planning the use of resources including time management
Allocating people and other resources to tasks
Managing time and priorities (setting timelines, Getting to meetings, appointments on time
Predicting – weighing up risk, evaluating alternatives and applying evaluation criteria
Discussion

17. Self-management
…that contributes to employee satisfaction and growth

18. Examples Setting goals and working to complete them
Knowing your own strengths and weaknesses
Taking responsibility
Working safely
Evaluating and monitoring own performance
I wanted to learn to use Windows 8. I enrolled in a course at the local Neighbourhood House and I set aside an hour each evening to practice what I learnt in class.
Discussion

19. Learning
… that contributes to continuous improvement in growth and operations

20. Examples Being prepared to learn new things
Being aware of the way you learn
Contributing to the learning environment in the workplace
Managing your own learning
Using a range of methods to learn (mentoring, peer support, networking, courses)
Being open to new ideas and techniques
Activities:
Learning Style Quiz
Online Quiz – Linkup Employability Skills
VAK Learning Style Quiz
Download Word doc from.
Discussion: Informal learning

21. Technology
… that contributes to effective execution of tasks

22. Examples Using office equipment appropriately
Having a range of IT skills
Applying IT as a management tool
Using IT to organise data
Having OHS knowledge to apply technology
Activity:
Watch Mark Wardle Employability Skills – Technology
Part 1
Part 2
Questions
How do you use technology?
How could you improve your skills or learn new skills?

23. You have employability skills!
Discussion
Do you volunteer, work in a family business, coach a sports team, play a team sport, manage a budget, care for a family member …?
You have employability skills!

24. Identifying Your Employability Skills using the STARR System
Situation
Task
Action
Result
Reflection
What happened? (Situation)
What did you have to do? (Task)
What did you do? (Activities)
What was the result? (Result)
What did you learn? (Reflection)

25. An example
I was asked to send a document to Nigeria. I needed to find a way to send this document so it would arrive safely. I searched the internet to find a courier company that could transport mail to Nigeria. I rang a friend who had worked for a logistics company to confirm that this company was reliable. A courier came to pick up the document and it was sent to Nigeria. I used initiative and technology to find a secure way to send the document and I learned how to track the document using the company web site and the parcel code. I can now send documents anywhere in the world.
Activity:
Apply the STARR model to identify your employability skills
Information:

26. Keeping a record of your employability skills
A portfolio is a collection of work which demonstrates your achievements over a period of time.
When you are collecting information about your employability skills, you should include a description of the activity you completed, the evidence you have of this activity and a personal reflection on the activity.
There are many ways to collect evidence of your employability skills.
For example: reports from a supervisor or teacher, personal reflections on learning activities, videos, photos, recordings and examples of work you have done.
There are different ways you can store these records. You could use an e- portfolio which is an electronic record of your work or you could keep a collection of samples in a binder or folder.
This portfolio will help you apply for jobs and prepare for job interviews
Would you use employability skills developing your portfolio of employability skills?
Activities:
Discuss employability skills used in developing a portfolio
Create an e-portfolio using a free web platform
Provide guidelines for producing portfolios
Download cover sheets to document employability skills here:

27. References
A Learner’s Guide to Employability Skills
Employability Skills: From Framework to Practice
Images sourced under a Creative Commons licence and from Microsoft Clipart
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