Workplace Basics

There is a growing national awareness that the competitiveness of American industry depends on a skilled work force capable of meeting today's business requirements. This second volume in the ASTD Best Practices series details the findings of the three-year ASTD/US Department of Labor nationwide study on how to develop the skills essential to the changing work force. The authors reveal that along with reading, writing, and computation, there is another set of skills that workers must have in order to perform effectively. Because of increased global competition, shifting techologies, leaner management systems, and emphasis on quality and service, workers have to be skilled in a much broader range of competencies. The authors indicate that for many American employers, the basic skills repertoire has expanded substantially to include such skills as adaptability, creativity, group effectiveness, and the most fundamental of all, learning how to learn. These skills, as well as reading, writing, computation, and other specific competencies, now constitute "workplace basics".
In this comprehensive new book, the authors specify the sixteen basic workplace skills and detail how each skill affects job performance in various occupations. For each of the skills the authors provide information on their definition and essential elements, the theories supporting current training methods for the skill, what constitutes competence and mastery, examples of successful training programs for developing the skill and what should be included in a curriculum for teaching the skill.
 
There is a growing national awareness that the competitiveness of American industry depends on a skilled work force capable of meeting today's business requirements. This second volume in the ASTD Best Practices series details the findings of the three-year ASTD/US Department of Labor nationwide study on how to develop the skills essential to the changing work force. The authors reveal that along with reading, writing, and computation, there is another set of skills that workers must have in order to perform effectively. Because of increased global competition, shifting techologies, leaner management systems, and emphasis on quality and service, workers have to be skilled in a much broader range of competencies. The authors indicate that for many American employers, the basic skills repertoire has expanded substantially to include such skills as adaptability, creativity, group effectiveness, and the most fundamental of all, learning how to learn. These skills, as well as reading, writing, computation, and other specific competencies, now constitute "workplace basics".
In this comprehensive new book, the authors specify the sixteen basic workplace skills and detail how each skill affects job performance in various occupations. For each of the skills the authors provide information on their definition and essential elements, the theories supporting current training methods for the skill, what constitutes competence and mastery, examples of successful training programs for developing the skill and what should be included in a curriculum for teaching the skill.