Human Resource Needs of Organizations in Terms of the Qualities They Need and Seek from

New Graduate Employees

Human Resource Needs of Organizations in Terms of the

Qualities They Need and Seek from New Graduate Employees
Nguyen Dang Quang
MBA 5.2
July 01, 2015
Dr. Bahaudin G. Mujtaba

Human Resource Needs of Organizations in Terms of the Qualities They Need and Seek from
New Graduate Employees

INTRODUCTION
In recent years, employers tend to seek prospective employees from those who have graduated
with bachelors degrees from universities all around the world. Although a number of studies
explored the qualities employers need and seek from new graduates were from educationspecific or industry/job-specific qualities, the most of qualities they are seeking are generic
qualities (qualities that apply across many fields). This paper reviews the literature of human
resource needs of organizations in terms of the qualities they need and seek from new
graduate employees (Elif , 2013) and integrates research in order to provide a list of generic
qualities for university students and educators to know what the expectation of the employer
for prospective employees and relevancy for the workplace and learning points.
SUMMARY OF CONTENT
Majority of employers focuses on those qualities of graduates in specific educational
programs as business, economics, accounting, tax, etc. Others focus on qualities which
particular types of employers require from graduates, for example, retailers and hotels
There are employers, however, pay much attention on the needs for qualities in general and do
not differentiate among types of employees.
Twenty-eight studies and researches, conducted in top workplaces all around the world
including the UK, Australia, USA, New Zealand and China by using method such as
questionnaire, job ads (Sodhi & Son, 2008; Zhu, 2009), qualitative method (Crossman &
Clarke, 2010), interview (Andrews & Higson, 2008; Crossman & Clarke, 2010; Jackling

Human Resource Needs of Organizations in Terms of the Qualities They Need and Seek from
New Graduate Employees

& De Lange, 2009; Kavanagh & Drennan, 2008; Morley & Aynsley, 2007; Rivera, 2011),
focus group (Kavanagh & Drennan, 2008; Morley & Aynsley, 2007), and participant
observation (Rivera, 2011) have been taken to review. The paper summaries the studies
reviewed provide information on the samples used, the research focus and major finding to
show the results that employer seek their need from employee to a specific education
program, industry or job. Generic qualities developed in number of education programs and
utilized in a variety of jobs which are the most crucial qualities. Those skills which
competencies employers prefer the most are communication, interpersonal, team-work
skills.

The second most common competencies employers seek from new graduate

employees are cognitive skills including critical thinking, analytical, problem solving skills
and understanding the organizational structure, the ability to be innovative, think laterally
and. Another important qualities which employers require from new graduate employees are
motivation for work and learning, data/information and technology-related skills; time
management skills and the ability to work under high pressure. Being ethical, leadership
skills, personality and previous work experience also the qualities which employers taken
into consideration in valuating employees.
In certain cases, employers seek specific qualities because that believe that these qualities
reflect particular generic qualities they need. According to Rivera (2011), the prestige of an
applicants educational credentials and accomplishments in extracurricular are the most
common criteria used in soliciting and screening resumes. The study showed that that
prestigious universities would have rigorous admission process to select intelligent students

Human Resource Needs of Organizations in Terms of the Qualities They Need and Seek from
New Graduate Employees

who are able to learn quickly, perform analytical capacities of job, social skill and selfpresentation better than others. They should be also interesting and enjoyable, have timemanagement skills, initiative, drive, ambition and a low risk of burnout. The third most
commonly used criterion employers use in soliciting and screening resumes is grade, but not
as indicator of intelligence. If the resumes are screened and applicants are selected, the
qualification on the resume does not play such key role whereas the final hiring decision bases
primarily on the performance review (Rivera, 2011).
IMPLICATION AND RELEVANCY FOR THE WORKPLACE
New knowledge and needs led to curriculum would institutions of higher education and
constant development of knowledge would require continuous curriculum renewal (Michael,
1998). Universities may focus more on the needs of the employer and make innovative
changes in their curricula to satisfy those needs for the benefits of both employers and
graduates. Universities are recommended to change their curricula to improve students
employment-related skills, such as communication, interpersonal, and team work skills,
cognitive skills; data/information- and technology related skills, time management skills and
ability to work under pressure; ethic-related skills, and leadership skills. Universities can also
add compulsory internship or work experience program to their curriculum further to the
original study courses. Taking one of the recruitment ads on the homepage of Intel a famous
global corporation all over the world - as an example. It too represents needs of employers
when seeking in an employee in recent years. An ideal candidate is required have to exhibit
the generic qualities as problem solving skills, strong written and verbal communication

Human Resource Needs of Organizations in Terms of the Qualities They Need and Seek from
New Graduate Employees

skills and team work (Software Engineer). Other academic knowledge and technical skills are
minimum and preferred qualifications. International University Vietnam National University
is one of the top universities in Vietnam focusing on the needs of employers when seeking
graduate employees. Beside the updated-curriculum with modern education system all over
the world, they also invest huge amount in extracurricular activities for students such as
organizing skills development classes, social activities, training courses every month and
clubs (academic & entertainment) running through out the year in order to well-prepare the
students with required qualities before graduating.
SUMMARY OF LEARNING POINTS
Result of a review of the literature on the qualities organizations need and seek from new
graduate employee shows most of the studies focus on what is needed from graduates of
specific education program, while the needs of different types of employer or the needs of
employer in general attracts more attentions from other researchers. Another finding is that
employers seek education or industry/job specific qualities in certain cases. However, at
least one generic quality is in employers top list of qualities that they seek from graduates. In
general, generic skills, for instance communication skills, can be easily applied across a range
of different jobs. Besides getting academic knowledge when studying university, students
should have to participate in extracurricular activities, social activities in order to improve
their soft-skill like leadership, communication, time-management to meet the employers
needs on nowadays.

Human Resource Needs of Organizations in Terms of the Qualities They Need and Seek from
New Graduate Employees

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New Graduate Employees

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