At the 9th annual PLA conference, the after-dinner speaker on Thursday, May 21, 1998 was Janis Foord Kirk, Career Management Consultant, Columnist for the Toronto Star and Ottawa Citizen and author specializing in career and workplace issues.
The following summary was written by Rose Marie Reid.
Ms. Foord Kirk set the stage for her message by describing the new workplace. It is a world of change, restructuring and re-engineering with new expectations and demands. In order to succeed in this environment, we need a different mind set, both individually and collectively.
Different skills are required now. In the past, there was work that required small do-able tasks that could be done with little literacy training. Today's workplace requires the ability to use more sophisticated equipment and people skills. Technical skills are becoming as important as reading and writing.
Those who will be on the upside of the new workplace will be resourceful, independent, team players who are flexible, have a positive attitude and demonstrate self-marketing skills. People in the business of helping people with careers can't separate work/career from life any more. We need a holistic approach to help others find their way to the upside.
Conference participants had the opportunity to rate themselves in the ten skill areas Ms. Foord Kirk has identified as essential. Survivability skills include: technical skills, learning, self-management, attitude, self-promotion, communication, research/information gathering, problem solving/consultant's mind set, creativity and entrepreneurial effort.
Employers are looking for active learners who learn outside of work and school. Now that information is becoming obsolete faster than ever before, the ability to gather and assimilate information is vital.
Creative action needed to build necessary worker skills includes:
- policies that encourage continuing education and life-long learning
- progressive educators who shift to a broader view
- better informed employers who see the whole person
- labour leaders who protect workers by making sure they are well trained and therefore valuable
- training for soft skills as well as technical skills
