IBM Institute for Business Value (IBV), in cooperation with the Economist Intelligence Unit, conducted a study to evaluate India’s growing skills challenge and proposed recommendations to bridge the gap. It recommends that addressing the looming talent shortage will be instrumental to prepare India for the competitive global economy.
A majority of Indian executives surveyed in the study said that the quality and quantity of skill in the Indian workforce is at least comparable to those of other countries, and many reported them to be superior. However, only 40 per cent indicated new employees recruited in local labour markets have the requisite job skills.
The IBM study, ‘Upskilling India’ derives insights from a survey of academics, corporate-recruiters, and emerging education leaders in India. In addition, the study also analysed results of recent surveys of start-up entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and corporate executives.
Economic growth
The Indian economy has shown enormous growth potential and as a result, entrepreneurship in India has grown rapidly after 2010. However, the looming skill gap is a major roadblock for growth. The Indian executives surveyed highlighted that improved access to higher-quality skills will boost productivity and efficiency throughout the economy. The required skills, however, are changing as rapidly as industries and the economy itself. New digital technologies are disrupting the business landscape, and are largely impacting how industries are structured and economic activity occurs. Traditional value chains are becoming increasingly fragmented, and new types of business ecosystems are rapidly forming and evolving.
“Skill is emerging as the new currency across businesses globally and in India. Today’s rapidly evolving economic environment makes up-skilling an imperative across job profiles and sectors. India is caught by both a skill gap and a higher education sector struggling to keep up. That is why, it is critical to take proactive measures to transform the higher education system to create a new model that better aligns with industry imperatives,” said DP Singh, Vice-President and Head - HR, IBM India/South Asia.
Higher education
The Indian executives surveyed believe that much of the nation’s current higher education system fails to meet the needs of students, industry and society. Sixty-one per cent of India’s surveyed educators indicate that the higher education system is unable to respond to changing societal needs. New technologies, ever-changing skills requirements and outdated curricula are challenging higher education system in its efforts to equip graduates with job-ready skills. Between 2010 and 2030, India’s working population is expected to expand from 750 million to almost one billion. Without adequate education and training, such population growth poses increased risk of the emergence of a growing class of the under- or unemployed. In an effort to align educational activities with industry imperatives and demands, the study recommends a transformation of higher education system.
Key recommendations
- Develop more practical, applied, experience-based education.
- Embrace technologies that improve educational access, experiences, and outcomes.
- Assess current capabilities and requirements, experiment with using new technologies and extend capabilities through ecosystem partners.
- Build deeper relationships with ecosystem partners.
- Identify the right partners from academia, industry and the public sector and empower an orchestrator. Define and reach consensus with key partners around a common vision for the education ecosystem, with clearly defined commitments from all partners. Formalise and design for sustainability.
Read the full study here: https://ibm.biz/upskillindia