21^st Century Workforce: Employers'

Ratings of Importance and Satisfaction of Skills

and Competencies College Graduates Need to Get
Hired in the Northeast
Baird, Anthony M. . Johnson & Wales University, ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2016. 10250179.

ProQuest document link

ABSTRACT (ENGLISH)
In the fast growing, global economy, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are directly linked to economic growth
through skills and productivity of their graduates (Finch et al., 2016). Unfortunately, several research studies
reported that the broader business community is generally dissatisfied with the job that colleges and universities
are doing in teaching these skills to graduates (Busteed, 2015a; Busteed 2015b; Dua, 2013; McMurray et al., 2016).
This quantitative research study investigated employers’ rating of Importance and Satisfaction of skills and
competencies necessary for hiring college graduates. Moreover, descriptions of employers’ rating of Importance
and Satisfaction were examined. The research questions that guided the study were: 1) What skills and
competencies do employers rate as Important for college graduates seeking employment? 2) What skills and
competencies do employers rate as Satisfied with for college graduates seeking employment?
A descriptive, quantitative research study was designed to describe the skills and competencies employers rated
to be Important and Satisfied with when hiring college graduates. The participants included employers (N=50) who
are regional chamber members in the Northeast. A questionnaire was used to collect data on employers’ ratings of
skills and competencies based on Importance and Satisfaction.
Analyses revealed that for skills and competencies Importance , 94% of employers rated Interpersonal Skills most
Important, 16% of employers rated Global Business Economy Skills the least Important. Dimension level
Importance, 78% of employers rated Communication Skills most Important, while 18% of employers rated
Personality, Leadership Skills, and Teamwork the least Important skills and competencies for college graduates
seeking employment.
Additionally, 76% of the employers rated Technical/Computer Knowledge the highest level Satisfaction; 18% of
employers rated Written Communications Skills the lowest level of Satisfaction. Dimension level Satisfaction, 80%
of employers rated Career Preparation and Professional Readiness Skills first at a high level of Satisfaction, while
88% of employers rated Communication Skills with the lowest level of Satisfaction for college graduates seeking
employment.
The findings of this study could assist in updating current HEIs curriculum and course offerings. Moreover, it may
stimulate conversation among employers, students, higher education administrators, and policymakers about
ways to better incorporate employers and workforce needs with students’ preparation before graduation.

DETAILS

Subject: Higher Education Administration; Economics; Business education

Classification: 0446: Higher Education Administration; 0510: Economics; 0688: Business education

Publication title: ProQuest Dissertations and Theses

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Number of pages: 152

Publication year: 2016

Publication date: 2016

Section: 1346

Publisher: ProQuest Dissertations Publishing

Place of publication: Ann Arbor

Country of publication: United States

ISBN: 9781369429022

Advisor: Kite, Stacey L.

Committee member: Parayitam, Satya N.; Warner, Jack R.

School: Johnson &Wales University

Department: Education

School location: United States -- Rhode Island

Degree: Ed.D.

Source type: Dissertations &Theses

Language of publication: English; EN

Document type: Dissertation/Thesis

Publication / order number: 10250179

ProQuest document ID: 1864688791

Document URL: https://search.proquest.com/docview/1864688791?accountid=31259

Copyright: Database copyright ProQuest LLC; ProQuest does not claim copyright in the
individual underlying works.

Last updated: 2017-04-14

Database: ProQuest Central

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 Bibliography
Citation style: APA 6th - American Psychological Association, 6th Edition

Baird, A. M. (2016). 21st century workforce: Employers' ratings of importance and satisfaction of skills and
competencies college graduates need to get hired in the northeast (10250179). Available from ProQuest Central.
(1864688791). Retrieved from https://search.proquest.com/docview/1864688791?accountid=31259

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