P5 Kojar Ahmed
Transferable skills are the skills employees gain throughout their career which can be transferred or
used in other professions. Transferable skills are split into two different types, hard transferable skills
and soft transferable skills. transferable skills are important because it sometimes means an
employee does not need training in some areas if they are already proficient at it. This is especially
useful in saving businesses money. Some transferable skills will be more desirable than others and
may be a deciding factor in getting a job, this is why employees should try to make sure they pick up
as many skills as possible in their career.
Some transferable skills are specific to an occupation and would be difficult to apply to another
occupation, these are known as hard transferable skills. Although it may be harder for an employee
to adjust to a new workplace with hard transferable skills, their skill may be in extremely high
demand for businesses and some may be willing to pay generously in order to have these employees.
An example of a job with hard transferable skills would be a mathematician. This job has hard
transferable skills because it requires the employee to be skilled in one main field of work, and
therefore leaves out any need for acquiring other skills. The use of numbers and general maths is an
important everyday skill that is required by businesses but it may be harder to get a job that does not
require an extensive use of math, therefore making it a hard-transferable skill.
Another hard-transferable skill would be a data analyst. A data analyst would be responsible for
interpreting any data that comes out of a business, whether it be in qualitative or quantitative form.
This would require very particular skills and would be difficult for any average employee to pick up.
Although being a data analyst has its perks and can be very beneficial in the long run, it can be a
difficult skill to apply to other jobs which do not require it as a proficiency, this is because employers
are unlikely to be as impressed with the skill if it is not required and might prefer soft transferable
skills like teamwork and reliability.
Hard transferable skills appear in many different occupations but may not always hinder someone
when attempting to break into another industry etc. For example, mathematicians who may not have
any soft transferable skills teamwork can be an important part of the business in other departments
such as finance.
Another occupation with hard transferable skills may be any job that requires a technical proficiency
in using one specific piece of equipment. This is a hard-transferable skill because it is unlikely another
business would specialise in using this piece of equipment and the employee would require re-
training in order to perform their job well. Employees who have only had experience with certain
software or hardware may not have soft transferable skills that they can use in the work
environment, such as working as part of a team or effectively meeting deadlines.
Soft transferable skills are those that can easily be interchanged or used throughout multiple
different businesses, no matter the work environment. Most employees will pick up at least some
soft transferable skills as we use them nearly every day and it is expected by your employer that you
demonstrate some of these skills. Soft transferable skills are easily picked up throughout an
employee's life and will come into play on a day-to-day basis whether they are in work or not.
An example of some soft transferable skills are teamwork, communication, attitude and reliability.
These are skills that are highly valued by employers and will be something they look for when
conducting interviews with candidates. These skills can be picked up in office jobs or even part time
labour jobs as they are such an integral part of the work environment. An advantage of having soft
transferable skills as opposed to hard transferable skills is that they are easier to pick up and they are
Transferable skills are the skills employees gain throughout their career which can be transferred or
used in other professions. Transferable skills are split into two different types, hard transferable skills
and soft transferable skills. transferable skills are important because it sometimes means an
employee does not need training in some areas if they are already proficient at it. This is especially
useful in saving businesses money. Some transferable skills will be more desirable than others and
may be a deciding factor in getting a job, this is why employees should try to make sure they pick up
as many skills as possible in their career.
Some transferable skills are specific to an occupation and would be difficult to apply to another
occupation, these are known as hard transferable skills. Although it may be harder for an employee
to adjust to a new workplace with hard transferable skills, their skill may be in extremely high
demand for businesses and some may be willing to pay generously in order to have these employees.
An example of a job with hard transferable skills would be a mathematician. This job has hard
transferable skills because it requires the employee to be skilled in one main field of work, and
therefore leaves out any need for acquiring other skills. The use of numbers and general maths is an
important everyday skill that is required by businesses but it may be harder to get a job that does not
require an extensive use of math, therefore making it a hard-transferable skill.
Another hard-transferable skill would be a data analyst. A data analyst would be responsible for
interpreting any data that comes out of a business, whether it be in qualitative or quantitative form.
This would require very particular skills and would be difficult for any average employee to pick up.
Although being a data analyst has its perks and can be very beneficial in the long run, it can be a
difficult skill to apply to other jobs which do not require it as a proficiency, this is because employers
are unlikely to be as impressed with the skill if it is not required and might prefer soft transferable
skills like teamwork and reliability.
Hard transferable skills appear in many different occupations but may not always hinder someone
when attempting to break into another industry etc. For example, mathematicians who may not have
any soft transferable skills teamwork can be an important part of the business in other departments
such as finance.
Another occupation with hard transferable skills may be any job that requires a technical proficiency
in using one specific piece of equipment. This is a hard-transferable skill because it is unlikely another
business would specialise in using this piece of equipment and the employee would require re-
training in order to perform their job well. Employees who have only had experience with certain
software or hardware may not have soft transferable skills that they can use in the work
environment, such as working as part of a team or effectively meeting deadlines.
Soft transferable skills are those that can easily be interchanged or used throughout multiple
different businesses, no matter the work environment. Most employees will pick up at least some
soft transferable skills as we use them nearly every day and it is expected by your employer that you
demonstrate some of these skills. Soft transferable skills are easily picked up throughout an
employee's life and will come into play on a day-to-day basis whether they are in work or not.
An example of some soft transferable skills are teamwork, communication, attitude and reliability.
These are skills that are highly valued by employers and will be something they look for when
conducting interviews with candidates. These skills can be picked up in office jobs or even part time
labour jobs as they are such an integral part of the work environment. An advantage of having soft
transferable skills as opposed to hard transferable skills is that they are easier to pick up and they are
