Employers worldwide express dissatisfaction about the mismatch between the workplace skills and competencies they seek and those in which job applicants demonstrate mastery. This workshop explored across countries and regions a) workplace skills that are not developed well in education systems, b) challenges or obstacles to be addressed within both the education and labor market systems and c) potential strategies to improve the skill match. The facilitators and participants shared research, perspectives, and experiences on the three topics in small groups with the goal of identifying promising strategies to reduce the gap between what employers need and what potential employees offer. 

Facilitator: Dr. Darleen OPFER, Director, RAND Education; Distinguished Chair in Education Policy, RAND Corporation, USA

Contributor: Dr. Anna SAAVEDRA, Associate Policy Researcher, RAND, USA