The capacity to communicate effectively, work collaboratively and tackle problems are among the core competencies that recruiters prioritise when evaluating candidates for roles. A five-year investigation by the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) has pinpointed six key transferable abilities that will prove as valuable as formal qualifications when securing and maintaining employment over the next decade.
This research emerges against a backdrop of significant labour market disruption. Earlier analysis from NFER suggested that artificial intelligence and automation could eliminate as many as three million positions at lower and mid-management levels by 2035. The challenge is particularly acute for young people: according to the Office for National Statistics, 1,012,000 individuals aged 16 to 24 were not in education, employment or training in the first quarter of 2026, representing 13.5% of that age group. This figure marks the first time the NEET population has exceeded one million since late 2013. To understand how candidates can demonstrate the abilities employers most value, we spoke with businesses across multiple sectors about what they seek in new hires.
Why does the ability to organise, plan and prioritise matter?
The transition from structured education to the workplace often comes as a shock to young people, and the capacity to manage your own workload independently has become essential in the eyes of most employers. Christian Townsley, co-founder of the North Bar group in Leeds, emphasises that working in a high-pressure hospitality environment demands the ability to remain composed under stress.
It's important that you can organise, you can multitask, you can identify who's next at the bar and remember that, he explains. Townsley incorporates trial shifts into his recruitment process, giving job seekers the chance to demonstrate these capabilities in a real working environment.
We'll observe them working with customers, working with the team, seeing how they fit in, seeing how they communicate, he says.
As employees advance in their careers and take on greater responsibility, the demands on their organisational abilities intensify.
There's organisation, ordering beer, pricing beer, planning social media, marketing, recruiting, Townsley notes, illustrating the breadth of tasks that require careful coordination in a growing business.
How do problem-solving and decision-making work together in employment?
Employers increasingly expect new staff members to respond swiftly to emerging challenges and make sound judgments when issues arise. Maria Aderonmu transitioned from a degree in political science to a role in strategy at Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, a company delivering major infrastructure projects across energy, defence and rail sectors throughout the UK. She has found that
adapting to each kind of situationhas been one of her most valuable lessons in the workplace. Her involvement in the university debating society proved formative in developing her capacity to think rapidly and respond to unexpected scenarios.
India Chaplin, people director at a construction company, stresses that she does not expect
every young person to have come across every scenario. Her advice to candidates is to reflect on how they have solved problems in non-work contexts—at school, within sports teams or community groups—and articulate how those experiences would transfer to a professional setting.
There's lots of different ways that people can show the softer skills that we're looking for and how they would approach a problem, even if it was a scenario they've maybe not come across to help think how they would put that into practice in the working environment, she explains.
Why is strong communication vital for workplace relationships?
Clear and effective communication serves as the foundation for building positive working relationships and preventing misunderstandings that can escalate into conflict. Jake Readman, general manager at North Bar, underscores that
developing communication skillsis fundamental in a busy service environment. He also highlights the importance of learning
how to de-escalate and resolve conflict in certain situations.
Be confident in who you are as a person and your ability to learn new skills and rise to new situations, he advises, adding that
the ability to show a little bit of initiativedistinguishes strong candidates.
El Cousins, who visited North Bar to submit her CV in person, recognises the value of face-to-face interaction with potential employers. She believes that meeting recruiters directly allows them to
get an idea of your personality, something she feels
doesn't always come across on a piece of paper or online. Readman was sufficiently impressed by her approach and interpersonal manner that he subsequently offered her shifts at the venue.
Why is collaboration essential for effective teamwork?
At Barbour's manufacturing facility in South Shields, HR director Lynn Bassett emphasises that the ability to collaborate is a non-negotiable requirement for all candidates they recruit.
Each department is interlinked with one another so working as one team is really important, she states. When evaluating applicants, Bassett looks for evidence of how candidates have worked collaboratively in previous roles or experiences.
They might not have the specific experience that's needed for the role, but we look more at those transferable skills, she explains.
Addie Pattas, who began a placement with Barbour as part of her fashion degree, has witnessed firsthand how teamwork underpins daily operations. She works within the department responsible for repairing vintage jackets returned by customers. Pattas has discovered that a significant portion of her role involves
communicating with not only the warehouse but also the factory and the shipping team, ensuring all parties remain informed throughout the repair and dispatch process.
How does creative thinking contribute to problem-solving?
While creative thinking is often associated with industries such as fashion and design, the capacity to approach challenges from unconventional angles and devise innovative solutions applies across all sectors and roles. At Barbour, Bassett notes that creativity manifests in numerous forms, and the company attempts to uncover this quality through carefully designed interview questions.
We'll ask questions that are quite generic around give us an example of when something's not gone to plan and how did you get it back on track, she explains, highlighting how creative problem-solving frequently yields the most effective outcomes.
Why is the ability to evaluate data becoming increasingly important?
In an era dominated by artificial intelligence and data-driven decision-making, large organisations require employees who can interpret, assess and act on information responsibly. A critical component of this skill is applying human judgment to determine what information is trustworthy and relevant—a capability known as information literacy. India Chaplin, people director at Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, emphasises that raw data alone does not
tell a story.
We need to pull that together, we need to think about why it's important, what it's telling us, she says. For her organisation, this translates into the ability to examine data—such as weather forecasts for engineers working on power lines—and identify what information is significant enough to communicate to other teams.
According to Skills England's 2026 annual report, employers are increasingly valuing transferable skills including communication, problem-solving, digital literacy and adaptability as automation reshapes the nature of work. The report expands on this agenda by defining digital literacy as the capacity to use digital tools and artificial intelligence effectively, reflecting the evolving technical landscape that workers must navigate.
How can young people use these skills to adapt to a changing labour market?
Jude Hillary, the economist who directed the NFER research project, argues that these human-centred capabilities will enable individuals to access and retain employment at higher skill levels even as automation displaces routine work.
This is where the job growth is going to be in the labour market, he states.
It's really important young people come into the labour market being able to compete for these jobs. Hillary believes that prioritising these six essential employment skills will help young people navigate a period of unprecedented change.
It's increasingly likely that during the course of your working life, you might have to make some fairly dramatic changes in what you're doing as your job gets replaced by technology, he notes.
An independent review chaired by Alan Milburn, a former health secretary, has been examining the scale of youth unemployment and inactivity. The interim report revealed that 42% of employers identified a lack of soft skills or work readiness as a significant obstacle when recruiting young people, with only 10% citing concerns about young people's resilience as the next most pressing issue. This finding underscores the urgency of equipping young people with the competencies the labour market demands.
Schools, colleges and universities face mounting pressure to integrate the development of these transferable skills alongside academic content, ensuring graduates enter the workforce with practical readiness. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has already signalled support for expanding technical education, proposing that more teenagers should commence technical training at age 14. This week, retail chain Sainsbury's announced a work experience initiative targeting 10,000 young people, reflecting growing commitment to bridging the gap between education and employment.
What happens next?
The final report of the Milburn review is scheduled for publication in September and is expected to outline concrete proposals for increasing the number of young adults in secure employment. The ONS will continue to release quarterly updates on NEET figures, providing ongoing measurement of progress in this area. Skills England's annual reporting cycle will track how policy and employer practice evolve in response to automation and the shifting skills landscape.
Key Facts
- The NFER's Skills Imperative 2035 identifies six essential employment skills: collaboration, communication, creative thinking, information literacy, organising and planning, and problem-solving and decision-making.
- Over one million young people aged 16 to 24 were not in education, employment or training in early 2026, the highest figure since late 2013.
- Forty-two per cent of employers cite lack of soft skills or work readiness as a major challenge when hiring young people, according to the Milburn review interim report.
- Automation and AI could eliminate up to three million low- to mid-level jobs by 2035, making transferable human skills increasingly valuable for career resilience.
- The government is expanding technical education pathways and work experience schemes to help young people develop the skills employers prioritise.
