Should You Hire for Transferable Skills or Direct Experience?
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In an ideal world, you’d be able to find and hire the perfect candidate with all the exact qualifications you’re looking for, including years of direct industry experience. In reality you are often going to have candidates that don’t quite meet the exact requirements you specified for the job role. But finding the candidate with the right transferable skills can be even better than finding someone with exactly the right experience or education.
What are transferable skills? Think along the lines of communication, critical thinking, leadership, or being a fast learner. These are skills that are hard to teach but transfer well from any one role to another. People usually learn and hone these skills through indirect teaching or mentorship, and many people will have an innate affinity where their transferable skills lie.
Barriers to Hiring for Transferable Skills
Applicant tracking systems (ATS) are a godsend for keeping track of candidates and measuring important metrics, but they can also muddy the water. Sometimes the best ATS can limit candidates that don’t exactly match the keywords in the job description. For this reason, it’s best to leave job descriptions and qualifications less restrictive. At Skywalk Group, we are firm believers in only requiring what is completely necessary for the successful completion of the job duties. For example, if someone with a high school diploma can be successful in the role, there’s really no reason to limit your prospects by requiring a college degree, and such limiting language may cause your ATS to screen out top-notch potential employees.
Candidates that are open to switching industries are motivated to pursue new opportunities and are willing to take a risk doing something new; they have a high potential because they are ready to learn new skills and take the next step in their careers. If such candidates have the necessary education and soft skills to perform well, they’re well worth the effort to screen for potential fit. If hired, they can be great employees to look at for future leadership roles for this same reason.
Which Transferable Skills to Prioritize
The skills you want to focus on might be universal, or they could depend on the role you are trying to fill. For instance, if you are hiring a new sales representative, you might look for excellent communication or public speaking skills, past evidence of being goal-oriented, and a history of thinking outside the box to solve customer problems. Meanwhile, you probably want any employee to be skilled at collaborating with other team members, adaptable and able to evolve to meet new challenges, and have a certain level of attention to detail.
When looking to hire new employees, it’s important to consider the whole package, not just their latest work experience. Don't make the mistake of overlooking soft or transferable skills, or you could miss out on some amazing team members.
If you’re struggling to fill open positions or wade through the torrent of applications, reach out to our recruiting team today. Skywalk Group has helped hundreds of organizations of all sizes achieve their recruiting goals with our hourly, on-demand model, so don’t wait!
By Jessica Palmer