The skills gap dilemma in America has been a widely discussed and debated issue in the economic community. Many industries and geographic areas in the U.S. claim that the skills gap is affecting the pool of qualified candidates applying for jobs.
In an article in Bloomberg Businessweek’s politics and policy blog, former President Bill Clinton was interviewed on his take of the skills gap in America. According to Clinton statistics indicate that it is an issue “It’s been reported that over 3 million jobs remain unfilled in the U.S., even though 7.6 percent of Americans are unemployed,” he said. “Employers say they can’t find qualified applicants…”
These numbers indicate that the positions are not being filled because companies are not being satisfied by applicants’ abilities, which is why the percentage of unemployed Americans is so high despite the abundance of available jobs.
One specific example of this phenomenon, according to Mark Kass, editor in chief of the Milwaukee Business Journal, is that manufacturing companies in Southeastern Wisconsin are finding it difficult to obtain qualified employees.
Not only is this frustrating for the millions of Americans out of work and the short-staffed businesses with overworked employees, but it can also make the hiring process for human resources departments nightmarish. Finding the perfect person that will be successful and contribute to business productivity is challenging enough without being overwhelmed with resumes that are lacking the one skill your company needs.
No matter what your stance is on the skills gap argument, sometimes your HR team may need human resources consulting services to assist them in the hiring process. With HR software solutions your technical dealings between potential candidates, as well as current employees, will run smoothly to give you more time to build strong personal relationships within your workplace.