Beyond Soft Skills: The Rise of Meta-Skills in the Workplace

In recent years, the significance of soft skills in the modern workplace has been repeatedly emphasised. There is no denying that soft skills such as communication, teamwork, interpersonal relationships, conflict resolution and analytical thinking, among others, are crucial. Yet, these aren’t enough to meet the ever-evolving challenges of the new-age world. It is important to understand the massive economic implications of skilling gaps and the resulting unemployment. Pearson’s latest report, ‘Lost in transition: Fixing the “learn-to-earn” skills gap’ reveals that economies lose billions in revenues due to skilling gaps, making it imperative for India to transition from degree-based learning to skills-based employment.  

Decoding Meta-skills and Their Significance 

Increasingly prized today, meta-skills denote higher-order skills aimed at enhancing employees’ ability to imbibe new knowledge and apply this quickly. Examples include learning a new language, an ability to pinpoint pain points in the business and resolve complex problems plus the capability to transfer skills between diverse domains.  

The other critical meta-skills include the ability to learn, comprehend and adapt speedily to the changing enterprise environment, self-awareness and resilience. Additionally, the ability to unlearn and relearn is indispensable for enterprises seeking to build a future-ready workforce.  

For readers wanting to know why these meta-skills are important, the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Future of Jobs Report highlights the reasons. The WEF notes that by the end of this year (2025), machines are poised to displace 85 million jobs. The saving grace is that 97 million new job roles may arise, more attuned to the novel labour division between humans, machines and AI algorithms.  

In this scenario, AI and automation are fast emerging as the new normal in industries across the globe. AI technologies are primed to forever transform the functions of employees in the workplace. In essence, technology is slowly but steadily changing the standard perception of what defines excellent employees. In the new ecosystem, organisations need people with the appropriate meta-skills to manage ongoing technological changes and challenges so they can survive and thrive in the future.  

Companies and employees that are not unlearning and relearning in this new-age environment may soon be on the slippery slope to eventual failure and obsolescence. As futurist Alvin Toffler stated, the illiterates in the 21st century won’t be people who can’t read and write but the ones who are unable to learn, unlearn and relearn. 

Rationale and Key Meta-skills 

Given this backdrop, the rationale for developing meta-skills as part of employees’ core skills and deep learning could not have greater validation. Alongside upskilling and reskilling, meta-skills can be most effective in plugging the skills gap that employees face across levels in varied industries. Herein, two skills need some elaboration – self-awareness and resilience.  

Self-awareness transcends the mere ability to know oneself. Rather, it encapsulates the power to know one’s strong points and weaknesses, empathy, how one responds to specific situations, etc. In the case of resilience, this involves the ability to challenge oneself by overcoming sundry hurdles, bouncing back quickly after setbacks, adapting to difficult situations speedily and deploying a novel approach to crack current conundrums. In a nutshell, resilience revolves around one’s willingness to rebound and get back into the thick of things without fretting over failure. 

Strategic Approach to Becoming Future-ready 

However, the development of meta-skills necessitates a strategic approach based on a vibrant blend of continuous training, real-world applications and sustained support. Companies must also assess whether their meta-skills training programmes are effective and the skills deployed efficiently in real-world scenarios. By monitoring the degree of employee engagement, companies can evaluate the success of meta-skills programmes as improved skills result in greater job satisfaction and lower attrition rates. An analysis of the relevant metrics will help in this assessment as well as in making requisite revisions to the skilling programmes.  

Recommendations to Fill the Skills Gap 

According to the Pearson ‘Lost in Transition’ report, addressing the evolving skills gap necessitates a multi-faceted approach. Besides acquiring relevant degrees, a crucial skill for employability is ‘Learning to Learn’, which denotes the ability to adapt, absorb and apply new knowledge continuously. This essential skill ensures employees can navigate job disruptions triggered by AI and automation.  

Furthermore, it is crucial to reinvent and expand the industry-academia collaboration such that the curricula are designed in line with industry needs. Countries such as Singapore have successfully integrated ‘learning-to-learn’ strategies into their education system, setting a benchmark for other nations to follow. We also have to focus on providing financial support models for career transitions. Countries like South Korea have ‘Work-First, Study-Later’ schemes, enabling employees to gain experience before pursuing higher education via financial support. India can adopt a similar model to incentivise continuous learning. 

There should be a comprehensive approach to workforce development, leveraging AI-driven learning tools, digital learning wallets, and work-integrated learning models. This approach can encompass strategic government policies that incentivise lifelong learning through cutting-edge AI-based training modules, encourage employers to transition towards competency-based hiring practices, and systematically track individual skill progression to facilitate more seamless professional transitions. 

(Author is Vinay Kumar Swamy, Country Head, Pearson India)