A lack of soft skills and workplace readiness is deterring employers from hiring entry-level talent.<\/p>\n
Nearly a third (31 per cent) of leaders believe entry-level workers are hardly or completely unprepared for work, according to a report from General Assembly<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n As a result, 29 per cent of leaders admitted they would avoid hiring junior-level employees altogether, based on responses from 651 business leaders and 2,361 working adults in the US and UK.<\/p>\n Why entry-level jobs must survive the AI revolution<\/a><\/p>\n Entry-level job postings fall to lowest level in five years, data finds<\/a><\/p>\n More entry-level staff leaving roles for better pay, survey finds \u2013 but what can employers do if raising salaries is not an option?<\/a><\/p>\n Almost half (47 per cent) also said new starters had only a moderate level of preparedness, while 22 per cent described them as completely ready for the workplace. Working adults had a different perspective, with 38 per cent saying entry-level employees are well prepared for their roles.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cToday\u2019s entry-level employees systematically struggle with soft skills and job preparedness, while employers continue to blame employees themselves,\u201d said Daniele Grassi, CEO of General Assembly.\u00a0<\/p>\n Tackling the soft skills gap<\/p>\n More than half (56 per cent) of leaders identified a lack of soft skills as the main reason entry-level workers are ill-prepared for work and 78 per cent expected employees to develop these skills themselves.<\/p>\n However, employees disagreed, with 62 per cent believing the responsibility for skills development should be on the employer.\u00a0<\/p>\n Generational differences in attitudes towards work may be partly to blame, according to Samantha Mullins, director of the consultancy Latitude HR. However, she added: \u201cIf these views persist, we will soon be seeing the same argument levelled at qualified roles as we won\u2019t be addressing the gap at the earliest opportunity.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Greater partnerships between schools and employers could help ensure young people are better prepared to enter the workforce when leaving education.<\/p>\n But employers still have a part to play. Mullins said: \u201cCertain skills need to be developed once in work and so investment in onboarding, induction and training is critical from an employer perspective.\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n The role of AI<\/p>\n AI is compounding the challenge facing entry-level talent with some roles being replaced by technology.\u00a0<\/p>\n Half of workers (48 per cent) said AI can perform most entry-level roles as well as humans, and 83 per cent believed it\u2019s at least somewhat likely technology will replace these positions.\u00a0<\/p>\n These fears are not unfounded, as the big four accountancy firms have already cut back on their graduate recruitment. KPMG reduced its graduate cohort by 29 per cent, from 1,399 in 2023 to 942 last year, according to The Telegraph.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n Mullins warned that there are \u201creal risks\u201d to overlooking entry-level workers and emphasised the importance of investing in younger staff to address some of the challenges associated with the country\u2019s ageing population.<\/p>\n She also encouraged employers to recognise the other qualities they can bring to the workplace. \u201cThis generation are digital natives and companies should be encouraging them to provide insight and challenge current ways of working to ensure progression and profitability,\u201d Mullins said.\u00a0<\/p>\n