Communication is the most requested skill for entry-level roles requiring a bachelor’s degree and one year of experience or less, according to research released today by PeopleScout, a division of TrueBlue (NYSE: TBI) that provides MSP and RPO services. Leadership and customer service skills also ranked high in demand.
PeopleScout analyzed data from labor market analytics firm Emsi, which included both permanent and temporary job openings; it included hundreds of thousands of US job postings from March 2020 to May 2020.
“New college grads are facing one of the most competitive job markets of our time,” said Chip Holmes, Interim President of PeopleScout. “Employers are looking for a balance of functional know-how and soft skills and are placing a strong emphasis on communication skills.”
For entry-level roles requiring a four-year degree and up to one year of experience, the most requested skill sets and number of unique job postings requiring that skill from March to May are:
- Communication: 341,840
- Customer service: 178,816
- Sales: 167,900
- Problem-solving: 142,247
- Detail-oriented: 131,486
- Research: 112,990
- Presentation: 106,869
- Microsoft Office: 102,973
- Innovation: 76,492
- Organizational: 70,395