With the ushering-in of new Board Leadership for Philly SHRM also comes a new platform that continues to build on our organization’s prominence in support of its HR professional and business community’s needs. The platform challenges each and every member of the human resource profession to engage in building a stronger bridge between our education system and business communities.
With globalization in full swing and an economy in recovery, yet still unpredictable, business emphasis on competitive positioning and sustainable growth has never been more intense. And this is true for most businesses of any size. As a result, over recent years small and large businesses alike have found themselves with a growing need for new-to-workforce employees that possess competencies far beyond the academic and technical, which were once considered…satisfactory.
As a consequence, our education system is finding itself under greater pressure to go further than traditional boundaries of education. Without question, companies are placing greater emphasis on hiring recent graduates of secondary and post-secondary schools in particular, who also possess proven levels of “personal effectiveness” and “workplace competencies” that are deemed important to meeting business objectives. Teaming, critical thinking, problem solving and proven dependability, to name a few, are traits that fresh graduates are expected to exhibit day #1 on the job!
As our business community stresses its requirements for competencies beyond academics, gaps emerge between itself and our education system. The bottom line is that many employers struggle to find young talent that represent “the full package”… academic, workplace and personal effectiveness competencies. Additionally, employers have difficulty assessing competency levels before they hire, which often leads to hit or miss hiring, employer – employee disappointment, and additional costs, among many other negative effects on business.
This is where Philly SHRM’s latest Platform kicks-in! It will call on its Board and membership community to develop a plan of action that increases Education System awareness, and that advocates for competency based training programs. This initiative will enable young talent to enter the work force armed with more of the skills necessary to position both employers and new employees for greater success. Planning is now underway to move this important initiative forward and our membership will be kept informed as to opportunities for participation.
Dennis Paris is President & CEO of Schreiber Paris, LLC., a brand and reputation consulting firm. Dennis is also an Adjunct Instructor in the Dept. of Marketing & Supply Chain Management at the Fox School of Business/Temple University, teaching Professional PMBAs market analysis, strategy and planning.
