South Africa will be celebrating its annual Youth Day on Saturday, with the theme for June: “Live the Legacy: Towards a socio-economically empowered youth.”
Millions of South African youths have however, very little to celebrate. According to Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) approximately 3.3million of the 10.3million young people aged between 14-24 years were not in employment, education or training in the first quarter of 2018. This implies that close to one in three young South Africans in this age group were disengaged with the labour market. More than 10% of the graduates aged between 25–34 years could not find a job, despite their education. The burden of unemployment is also concentrated amongst the youth as they account for 63,5% of the total number of unemployed persons. Lack of employability skills Dr Karina de Bruin, JvR Academy Managing Director, says these results are a “sad reality”, despite efforts over the years to improve the plight of South Africa’s future generations. “The education system focuses on subject and functional competencies. And that should indeed be the case,” she says. “One should be able to read, write, calculate, understand history, geography and science. All these subjects contribute to potential career and personal development.” However, a crucial element of career and personal development is employability and the skills that makes one employable. The employability skills listed by employers include: problem solving, initiative and self-motivation, coping with pressure, team work, ability to learn and adapt, valuing diversity and negotiating skills. “The education system is lacking when it comes to this aspect of employability. We should also not forget that the individual is as important in determining employability.” Responsibility for one’s own development De Bruin refers to a Malaysian study which demonstrates that “self-concept, participation in career development activities, and industrial training” play the biggest role in terms of the acquisition of employability skills. The first two elements are solely related to the individual. She says another aspect that should be added is self-directedness: taking responsibility for one's own development. Young people need to look for opportunities to develop their workplace and functional skills, but also to obtain behavioural competencies that will contribute to finding and keeping a job. “Employability skills are often overlooked when attempts are made to make the youth economically active.” Many people have become involved in youth initiatives, simply because it seems to be the right thing to do. There is a lot of talking, just to advance their own careers. “If we look at the huge numbers of young people who go untouched by many of the youth bodies, it is indeed unsettling,” De Bruin remarks. Small steps for future change “My philosophy in terms of people development has always been that you only need to touch one or two people... They go back to their communities and make a difference in the lives of those around them as well.” De Bruin believes simple and small changes is achievable to have meaningful long-term effects. One step is to infuse the education curriculum with employability skills development, another is to enhance communication channels between important role players so that everybody starts putting words into action. ENDS MEDIA CONTACT: Idéle Prinsloo, 082 573 9219, idele@thatpoint.co.za, www.atthatpoint.co.za ABOUT JvR Africa Group: JvR Africa Group of companies consists of JvR Psychometrics, JvR Consulting Psychologists, JvR Academy, and JvR Safety. With it’s head office is situated in Johannesburg; the group conducts business nationally and across Sub-Saharan Africa. They work with test developers, consultants and academic institutions all over the world and supports a range of development opportunities and hosts events around People Development in Africa, a cause they feel is extremely important to the future of our continent. For more information on JvR Africa Group please visit: Website: https://jvrafricagroup.co.za/ LinkedIn: JvR Africa Group Facebook: The JvR Africa Group - People Development in Africa Twitter: JvR Africa Group YouTube: The JvR Africa Group
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Authored by: Dr. Karina de Bruin Managing Director: JvR Academy | Counselling Psychologist
The workplace today mirrors the world we live in – a place that has become increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA). Surviving in this VUCA world means business “unusual”. People need to adapt and learn faster to accommodate change. They must be self-directed and learning agile to survive. Self-directed learning Self-directed learners take responsibility for their own learning, with or without the help of others. They identify their own learning needs, they set their own goals, and they can assess their own learning efforts. Some people have certain characteristics which makes it “easier” for them to be self-directed. They are often more resilient, focused, original, creative and organised. This openness to learning cultivates learning agility. Self-directed learners have the make-up to absorb information from their experiences, take time to reflect on it and then apply what they have learnt in a changed or unfamiliar environment. Learning agility The new world requires of people to be learning agile. Many jobs change dramatically over a relatively short time period. Workers need to constantly update their existing skills and knowledge and acquire new skills and knowledge to ensure career success. The time lapse between knowledge acquisition and obsolescence is increasingly becoming smaller, therefore new ways of learning besides formal training must be explored. The environment (workplace) must be conducive to develop a willingness to learn and offer learning opportunities that are relevant and appealing to learners. Traditional learning is associated with the “teacher classroom concept” where the teacher or trainer transfers knowledge to the learner. However, organisations can no longer completely depend on traditional training and development. The promotion of self-directed learning may well be the best approach to keep learning aligned with a rapidly changing environment. Alternative ways of learning are encapsulated in concepts such as “blended”; “just in time”; “on demand”; “drip-feeding” or “dip-stick” learning. The self-directed learner can identify a specific need that will help him or her overcome obstacles in the workplace. They can “dip into” learning that will propel them forward. The learning is generally “short and sharp” and must be meaningful to the individual him- or herself. People who realise they keep falling behind, or struggle to complete certain tasks must be made aware of their own learning agility and the fact that they can improve it. Companies with a self-directed learning culture generally have more learning agile workers. These organisations do not fall apart in the face of changes and challenges. They invest in their employees to become more self-directed and to acquire learning agility. Self-directed and agile learning is not reserved for certain individuals in the organisation. It should be everyone’s responsibility. Being learning agile does not mean you have to be the Einstein of the company. Many big wins come from small changes. Measuring self-directedness and learning agility Organisations should identify the levels of self-directed learning and learning agility in its workforce. There are various formal measures available. These assessments are often available online but can be quite costly. There are more informal assessments such the 360-degree feedback process where you test your agility in terms of how your colleagues and peers perceive you. Some of the questions you could ask to determine your level of self-directedness and learning agility include: 1. Are you flexible enough to act on rapid change? 2. How motivated are you to learn something new – or do you need someone to tell what you need to learn and how to learn it? 3. Do you ever challenge the status quo to improve systems or processes? 4. Do you only use what is at your disposal to achieve things, or are you looking for innovative ways to solve problems? 5. Do you learn from previous failures, or do you persist with the same way hoping it will achieve your desired results? 6. Are you open to feedback and other ideas people present to you? Once you have assessed the feedback, you will be in a better position to develop a self-directed learning plan which should improve your learning agility. Learning is never wasted; however, it should preferably be relevant to the change the learner experiences in the organisation to adjust effectively to it. ENDS MEDIA CONTACT: Idéle Prinsloo, 082 573 9219, idele@thatpoint.co.za, www.atthatpoint.co.za ABOUT JvR Africa Group: JvR Africa Group of companies consists of JvR Psychometrics, JvR Consulting Psychologists, JvR Academy, and JvR Safety. With its head office is situated in Johannesburg; the group conducts business nationally and across Sub-Saharan Africa. They work with test developers, consultants and academic institutions all over the world and supports a range of development opportunities and hosts events around People Development in Africa, a cause they feel is extremely important to the future of our continent. For more information on JvR Africa Group please visit: Website: https://jvrafricagroup.co.za/ LinkedIn: JvR Africa Group Facebook: The JvR Africa Group - People Development in Africa Twitter: JvR Africa Group YouTube: The JvR Africa Group Author: Dr. Karina de Bruin, Managing Director of JvR Academy, a JvR Africa Group company When going to work, one does not necessarily consider the emotional aspect of it, which in reality plays a significant role in your productivity and success. We are after all emotionally driven creatures, whether we want to be or not. This is where the term Emotional Intelligence comes in. It’s the ability to recognise specific emotions in oneself and others, acknowledge their effect on one’s goals and relationships, and either minimise negative effects or actively elicit emotions more appropriate to the situation. With Emotional Intelligence as a tool in hand, you can find much more effective ways of dealing with challenges at work and get your work done as efficiently as possible. There is a lot that companies can do to foster Emotional Intelligence (or EQ as called by its metric) among employees, one of which is to make it part of their corporate culture. When companies make the language of Emotional Intelligence part of the everyday work experience, they create an environment in which employees naturally embrace and start living the concept. This can lead to lasting results and a bigger payoff in increased productivity. Internationally, and locally, Emotional Intelligence has gained popularity in business over the last few decades. Research conducted by the JvR Africa Group has shown that, when comparing professionals in South Africa to their U.S. counterparts, the South Africans generally report higher levels of EQ on most of the sub-components of the EQi2.0, which is internationally widely used to assess Emotional Intelligence. However, these differences are relatively small and not really meaningful. But what is it that increased EQ can do for a company? Benefits Success on employee and business level hinges on effective personal performance and favourable relationships with customers, suppliers, colleagues, subordinates and stakeholders. There are many examples where Emotional Intelligence can have a positive effect, but warns that it must be considered in conjunction with factors like motivation, education and experience. Many companies already use psychological assessments in their recruitment and selection process. To obtain a more comprehensive picture, the assessment of Emotional Intelligence should be included, as it can distinguish between an employee who only just copes and one who excels. Such assessments also ensure that high EQ employees are hired from the start, reducing the cost of development interventions later. Productivity usually suffers when employees face aspects of their work they don’t enjoy or people with whom they disagree. Emotional Intelligence provides the tools they need to become more productive, cope better with work stress, resolve differences and work effectively in teams. A high EQ is therefore vital for executive positions, where good stress management, excellent problem-solving and sound decision-making are expected. By nature, leaders often seek to enhance their performance, and exposure to Emotional Intelligence development opportunities can help them achieve their goals in a sustainable way. Improving EQ Emotional Intelligence relates to a broad spectrum of soft skills so companies should first establish where improvements are required. Professionally administered self-report assessments, completed by employees, will highlight areas of concern and provide a guide for coaching and/or skills development. With this self-information, employers can plot the best course for EQ improvements in their workforce. Emotional Intelligence can then be increased through appropriate employee development that focuses on practical capabilities that deliver immediate results. Programmes can be customised to address the specific competencies required. They are typically offered as workshops stretching over one or more days and delivered as face-to-face sessions with an experienced facilitator. Ultimately, if companies can truly appreciate the fact that their employees are emotional beings, they can find effective ways of managing this aspect so that it can be the x-factor that sets the organisation apart from its competition, instead of hampering its growth and success. ENDS MEDIA CONTACT: Idéle Prinsloo, 082 573 9219, idele@thatpoint.co.za, www.atthatpoint.co.za ABOUT JvR Africa Group: JvR Africa Group of companies consists of JvR Psychometrics, JvR Consulting Psychologists, JvR Academy, and JvR Safety. With it’s head office is situated in Johannesburg; the group conducts business nationally and across Sub-Saharan Africa. They work with test developers, consultants and academic institutions all over the world and supports a range of development opportunities and hosts events around People Development in Africa, a cause they feel is extremely important to the future of our continent. For more information on JvR Africa Group please visit: Website: https://jvrafricagroup.co.za/ LinkedIn: JvR Africa Group Facebook: The JvR Africa Group - People Development in Africa Twitter: JvR Africa Group YouTube: The JvR Africa Group |
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