I want to shout this from the rooftops!
The National Association of Colleges and Employers does a survey of employers each year, asking the most important skills they want from new candidates. They make this information available to colleges so colleges can teach those skills.
Here’s what NACE announced on February 24, 2016 (just a year ago):
When asked to assess candidate skills/qualities, employers rated verbal communication skills the most important, according to NACE’s Job Outlook 2016 report.
Employers rated verbal communication skills (4.63 on a five-point scale) highest this year, above teamwork (4.62) and the ability to make decisions and solve problems (4.49), the two skills that tied for the top spot last year.
Although the results were different the previous year, the verbal communications skill has been #1 several times in the past.
How can this be?
How is it that verbal communications rates over teamwork, decision-making and problem solving, planning/organizing/prioritizing, several types of technical knowledge, and the ability to sell or influence?
Because communication is important for all of the other skills.
And because employers are not seeing good verbal communication skills in their candidates. Believe me, if they saw great verbal communication skills, they would be worrying about something else.