Mind the Skills Gap 2020
We asked U.K. employers and employees about skills and training during the COVID-19 pandemic.
65
SMEs say the pandemic highlighted skills gaps within their organisation.
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For small- and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), the skills deficits are:
Digital skills
Health and safety
Leadership skills
Technical skills
Financial skills
Soft skills
42%
37%
33%
32%
31%
28%
When asked what the most important future skills are likely to be, nearly half (48%) said the ability to quickly adapt to changes in the working environment.
%
SMEs believe the ability to adapt will be the most important future skill.
48
%
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of SMEs have accelerated their digital transformation.
67
%
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of employees have undertaken skills training in 2020.
31
%
Since the start of 2020, only 3 in 10 (31%) of SME employees have undertaken skills training or professional development.
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Within this group, nearly 8 in 10 (78%) believe that their current workforce has the right skills to support their organisation’s digital transformation journey and future growth.
Only 18% of SME employees expect to undertake training in the next 12 months.
of employees feel prepared for the digital workspace.
70
%
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Read the full 2020 survey findings in the report.
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When asked about working in a digital workplace, 7 in 10 (70%) SME employees said that they feel prepared, with 21% saying they feel ‘very prepared’ and 49% stating that they feel ‘somewhat prepared’.
21
%
49
%
31
%
18
%
78
%
48
%
Among this group, nearly 95% believe that these skills gaps are significant enough to hamper their organisation’s future growth and success.
95
%
1/2
2/2
