The top 6 skills today’s employers want

After four years of college, my son is about to graduate with a degree in Environmental Politics. We are both aware that he is entering the job market at a time when more and more young people cannot find work.

While putting together his résumé, he recently asked me what kind of skills today’s employers want from a new job candidate. A lot of people his age are probably asking the same question, so I thought I’d share a few thoughts.

According to recent surveys, employers these days aren’t just looking for experience. They’re also interested in “softer skills” like problem-solving and creativity that can play as big a role in career advancement as training or education.

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How cell phones can break migrant workers’ enforced isolation

Rahel was confined for more than two years in her employer’s home in Beirut, 13 years ago.

She explained that for six months her only contact with any person outside her employer’s immediate family was through hand signals across the roofs to another woman. After some time she realised she could converse with some Sudanese kitchen workers in a hotel that backed onto her employer’s house. Through a sealed window she established her first verbal contact beyond that of the “madam’s” family, but she never saw their faces.

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What will 3D printing mean for the world of work?

3D printing is poised to revolutionize the manufacturing industry. What impact will that have on today’s manufacturing jobs?

My wife drives a Honda, which we bought second-hand. But if I wanted to, today I could print a new life-sized or miniature Honda at home, using a 3D printer and computer files which are freely available at Honda’s website.

OK, it wouldn’t be a real car but a plastic model — which is usually what comes to mind when people think about 3D printing. Now that’s starting to change.  Continue reading