Staying ahead requires not just talent but the right talent. For HR professionals, ensuring that employees are equipped with the necessary skills is crucial for maintaining a competitive edge. Enter the GSE Job Profiles¡ªa game-changing tool designed to facilitate role-targeted upskilling by mapping English language skills to specific job roles. This blog post will explore how HR teams can leverage this innovative tool to enhance workforce capabilities efficiently and effectively.
The GSE Job Profiles utilizes ÃÛÌÒapp¡¯s Global Scale of English and the Faethm by ÃÛÌÒapp skills ontology to provide a detailed analysis of the language requirements for nearly 1,400 job roles. This precise mapping allows HR professionals to make informed talent management decisions, including hiring, training and development, and ensuring that employees are adequately prepared for their roles now and in the future.
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Upskilling is vital for both individual and organizational growth. Upskilling not only enhances employee performance but also boosts morale and retention.
In fact, say they would stay with their current organization if there was investment in their career development, and 9 in 10 employees are looking to their employer to provide English language training.
English in particular, is becoming an even more sought-after skill, with AI technology increasing the importance of soft skills such as teamwork and communication. And the emerging workforce agree, with 92% of Gen Z and Millennial workers believing English skills will be increasingly important for work in 5 years¡¯ time.?
By focusing on developing the specific English skills needed for success in a role, organizations can both optimize workforce efficiency and create a future-ready team.
The GSE Job Profiles simplifies the process of targeted upskilling by providing clear benchmarks for English language proficiency. Whether you¡¯re hiring new talent or looking to supercharge your existing talents¡¯ careers, HR teams can use these benchmarks to identify skills gaps and tailor language learning and development initiatives accordingly.
To maximize the benefits of the GSE Job Profiles, HR professionals should incorporate the insights into their overall workforce planning strategy. Here are some key steps to consider:
The first step is to establish the English language proficiency levels required for each job role within the organization. The GSE Job Profiles provides a global reference point, detailing the necessary English levels across speaking, listening, reading and writing skills.
Once you have established the English language requirements, it's essential to assess the current proficiency levels of your workforce. This assessment will help identify any language skills gaps and highlight areas where targeted upskilling is needed.
Using tools like the Versant by ÃÛÌÒapp language assessment, HR professionals can quickly and easily evaluate employee proficiency at scale. As both Versant by ÃÛÌÒapp tests and GSE Job Profiles report on the Global Scale of English, you can immediately compare results against role benchmarks. This makes it easy to identify talent that has the right level of English skills for their roles and gain valuable insights into your team¡¯s English language strengths and weaknesses.
With this insight, HR teams can develop tailored learning and development programs to address skills gaps or proactively develop skills for future roles as part of your workforce¡¯s career progression. You can use apps like Mondy by ÃÛÌÒapp to help you with this.
Organizations can ensure that their upskilling efforts are effective and measurable by aligning language training programs with the GSE Job Profiles benchmarks.
The GSE underpins all ÃÛÌÒapp English Language learning materials. So, if you want a language training solution that features role-relevant language training, helps you track your team¡¯s progress and is easy to implement, check out Mondly by ÃÛÌÒapp. With a dedicated dashboard, you can monitor your workforce¡¯s English learning and help them reach their career goals.
Implementing a targeted upskilling strategy using the GSE Job Profiles can yield significant benefits for organizations. Here are some of the key advantages:
With accurate language skill profiles, recruiters can quickly identify candidates who meet the job requirements. This not only speeds up the hiring process but also improves the quality of new hires, as they are better equipped to perform their duties from day one.
In fact, in a 2023 ÃÛÌÒapp-conducted global customer survey of 34 Versant by ÃÛÌÒapp Test customers, 94% said using Versant by ÃÛÌÒapp tests helped reduce time-to-hire and 89% agreed it improves the quality of new hires.
72% of employees say they would find their job easier if they had better English skills. Organizations can enhance workforce performance by addressing English skills gaps and providing employees with the tools they need to succeed.
Employees who feel supported in their development are more likely to be engaged and productive, contributing to a positive workplace culture.
of employees leave their jobs due to a lack of development. Upskilling initiatives can also lead to higher retention rates and increased job satisfaction. When employees see a clear path for growth and development, they are more likely to remain committed to the organization and motivated to achieve their career goals.
While the benefits of language upskilling are clear, there are challenges that organizations may face when implementing such initiatives. Here are some tips for overcoming these obstacles:
Employees may be resistant to change, particularly if they feel their skills are being scrutinized. To address this, HR teams should communicate the benefits of upskilling clearly and involve employees in the planning process, ensuring they feel supported and valued.
Providing employees with access to the necessary resources is crucial for successful upskilling. Organizations should invest in a range of learning and development options, ensuring that employees have the tools they need to succeed.
Finally, it's important to measure the success of upskilling initiatives. By tracking progress against the GSE benchmarks, HR teams can evaluate the effectiveness of their programs and make data-driven decisions to refine and improve their strategies.
As the business landscape continues to evolve, the importance of English language upskilling will only increase. The GSE Job Profiles provides HR professionals with the insights and tools needed to adapt and thrive in this dynamic environment.
Using target roles or identifying skills gaps helps you focus your language upskilling initiatives and create a workforce that is not only skilled but also agile, ready to meet the challenges of the future head-on.
In conclusion, the GSE Job Profiles is a powerful tool that can transform the way organizations approach upskilling. By aligning language proficiency with job roles, HR professionals can enhance recruitment, improve employee performance and build a future-ready workforce. For those looking to explore further, reach out to us to discover how the GSE Job Profiles can benefit your organization.
English is one of the most widely-spoken languages in the world, but how much do you know about the language? Here are 11 facts about English?that you might not know.
Students all over the globe learn English for many reasons. Some of these motivations may come from the students themselves ¨C perhaps they are learning because they are travelling to an English-speaking area, or they want to be able to converse with English-speaking friends and colleagues. Other reasons for learning could include meeting school requirements, studying abroad, or progressing their careers.
As well as different reasons to learn English, there are also different goals. Many students are still focused on becoming fluent in English, and we are seeing an increase in people who want to learn the language for specific reasons. For example, immersing themselves in a particular culture or simply being able to order from a menu while travelling abroad.
Teachers are focusing on these personal needs to help students achieve their actual goals. It¡¯s likely you¡¯ve already spoken to your students about why they want to learn English. Understanding this is important as different motivations can influence a student¡¯s attitude towards learning the language ¨C and it may be necessary for you to adapt your teaching strategies for different groups of learners.
Let¡¯s meet some different groups of students, learn a little more about their motivations and explore whether different motivations alter how students learn English. You may recognise some of these learners in your classes.
These students are learning English for pleasure or personal reasons. It might be because of travel, social or family reasons or perhaps because a better grasp of English might assist them with their careers. There are also adult learners who could be learning English as an immigration requirement.
For example, 23-year-old Alice decided to learn English so she could meet people and have more meaningful interactions with her English-speaking neighbours. She says: ¡°I was very shy and not very confident in speaking to people, but learning English helped me connect with others and meet new people. I have changed a lot.¡±
A motivation like Alice¡¯s requires strong teacher support and peer motivation woven into structured learning. Alice can set her goals and with the GSE Learning Objectives map out what she needs to do to achieve them. Teacher encouragement and personal support ¨C and easy access to digital coursework, a social community of others all learning English, and small classes that emphasise conversation ¨C keep people like Alice engaged and motivated to achieve her language goals. ¡°I cannot do it without them¡±, she says.
These learners are typically in a more formal type of English programme and are learning the language to achieve specific career milestones, such as a promotion. Their employer might even be paying for their learning or they might be reimbursed for the cost of their lessons.
Vincenzo is 33 and works as a Product Manager in Milan for an international organization with offices around the world. He says: ¡°I asked to take English classes as part of my professional development. My company chose an English provider and gave me a choice of group or one-to-one classes. I chose one-to-one classes as I¡¯m easily distracted.¡±
Professional learners like Vincenzo succeed using a blended learning model of learning in class and at home that they can tailor around their lives. They have a strong motivation to succeed ¨C that¡¯s why learning at home works for them ¨C but step-by-step progress provided by the GSE Learning Objectives is also important to keep this motivation alive. ¡°I met with my teacher once a week where we would work on mistakes I would make while speaking English. He would also give me extra practice materials, like interesting games and videos to listen to in my own time, to help me really get a better understanding of the language,¡± Vincenzo says.
Learning English is a requirement for many school programmes and students will continue this at college or university. Many of these students will be learning English with a formal course that offers practice tests for high-stakes exams.
Seventeen-year-old Subra is from Malaysia and learns English at school. Some of her family live in Australia and she is considering studying abroad to attend a University that specializes in health care. When she was young, she learned in a traditional classroom backed with tests that helped her see how she was progressing. Now she uses technology, such as her Android Huawei phone to practise her English but still needs the validation of regular testing to know she is on track.
Subra?says: ¡°I am used to studying for tests as I prepared hard for exams to get into middle school and senior school, which was totally determined by test results.¡±
Academic learners like Subra need to see demonstrable results to help them stay motivated and guide them to the level of English they need to achieve to get the required score on high-stakes tests. With the clear GSE Learning Objectives and a placement test, academic learners can map out where they are right now and where they need to be in order to reach their academic goals. These learners need encouragement and validation of their progress from their teachers to help keep them on track.
Understanding student motivations will help you teach to their specific needs, thus helping them to stay focused and motivated in achieving their goals.
Kirsty Murray taught English for a year at a coll¨¨ge (the French equivalent of a secondary school) in Villers-Cotter¨ºts: a town in the north of France known for being the birthplace of Alexandre Dumas. She taught mixed-ability groups of 11- to 16-year-olds, with classes ranging in size from 10 to 35 students. Here, she shares the five lessons she learned from the experience.
