What ‘skills first' really means: Panellists at SkillsFuture Forum talk culture, systems, mindsets

Straits Times

10-07-2025

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(From left) SkillsFuture Singapore chief executive Tan Kok Yam, Cragar Industries managing director Joseph Wong, Grab chief people officer Ong Chin Yin and Boston Consulting Group managing director and partner Sagar Goel at a panel moderated by ST associate editor for newsroom strategy Jeremy Au Yong on July 7.
SINGAPORE – Every six months, the employees of Singapore's tech giant Grab receive feedback from their peers, not just on what they have accomplished, but also on the areas where they truly shine.
This helps managers to identify desired behaviours and strengths, further aiding them in assessing each employee's skills and proficiency.
It is also part of the ride-hailing giant's ongoing journey to build a skills-first culture, said Grab chief people officer Ong Chin Yin.
'You are truly 'skills first' when your job descriptions, your goals and your people are tagged more by skills than by descriptions of work to be done,' she said.
Moving towards a skills-first workforce involves rethinking how skills are measured, work is structured and success is defined, said industry leaders at a panel on July 7.
At the annual SkillsFuture Forum, they shared how they are
reimagining workforce practices around skills, the challenges they have faced so far, and some solutions as they adopt a skills-first mindset.
The panel was moderated by Mr Jeremy Au Yong, associate editor for newsroom strategy at The Straits Times.
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The forum, held at Raffles City Convention Centre, was the first event of the SkillsFuture Festival that runs from July 7 to Aug 18.
The festival features roadshows, job fairs and learning events held at venues across the island.
Panellist Sagar Goel, managing director and partner at Boston Consulting Group, said that going 'skills first' involves changing mindsets and practices.
Mr Goel said that organisations should start by asking what business outcomes they want to achieve, and then work backwards to identify the skills needed to get there.
This sort of business thinking indicates the shifting mindset today, he said.
It also extends to performance evaluations, Mr Goel added.
'It shouldn't be just about business, operational KPIs (key performance indicators), but are you improving your skills? At our firm, your evaluation is also (based) on your competencies.'
When companies recognise that their core strength comes from the competencies of their people, their approach can be described as 'skills first', said SkillsFuture Singapore chief executive Tan Kok Yam.
'A skills-first company starts from the point of view that what you put on the table is your comparative advantage, as your capabilities stem from the skills of your employees,' he said.
He added that clearly signalling the skills companies are looking for, whether it is coding or communication, can guide individuals and training providers.
But this clarity is not always easy to achieve. Grab's Ms Ong said that it is not easy to break down one's job into skills, and even harder to test how proficient in those skills your workers are.
Many employers still struggle to define required skills and proficiency levels, while individuals often find it hard to articulate what sets them apart in terms of skills.
'So I think to be 'skills first', we need to make sure that the infrastructure of skills is well built, and that the inference of skills is not too difficult,' she said.
Mr Joseph Wong, managing director at manufacturing firm Cragar Industries, said that the company's skills-first approach includes clearly communicating to employees the importance of upskilling and the need to demonstrate a willingness and ability to learn.
For new hires in emerging areas like data and sustainability, the firm offers skill-based incentives, Mr Wong said, with plans to gradually extend this to existing staff.
Traditional resumes often fall short in reflecting a candidate's true capabilities, Mr Wong said, noting that he places greater emphasis on whether the candidate has transferable skills and soft skills, such as willingness to learn.
'The resume that demonstrates transferable skills, soft skills and willingness to learn matches the skills-first approach that we want to have,' Mr Wong said.
The manner of signalling what skills a job candidate possesses, especially for mid-career workers making a switch, was also discussed by other panellists.
Mr Goel suggested that digital portfolios can help candidates showcase completed projects and feedback received from clients, especially if they are transitioning from a reskilling programme.
Video testimonials or even recorded responses can also better reflect soft skills, he said.
To better assess soft skills, Ms Ong said, companies also need to change their hiring processes.
'We do a lot of getting people to do homework during interviews,' she said. 'We either throw them a case, and they need to come back with their assessment... or we get them to pitch a story or sell something to us.
'We have built a very, very specific behavioural way to look at whether people have the cultural nuances that we're looking for.'
The panellists also touched on how organisations can help employees to develop skills when artificial intelligence takes away entry-level tasks, and the challenge of investing in training employees who may leave.
Mr Tan pointed out that society rarely questions the value of early education, but scrutinises the return on investment on adult training.
'You have to invest in the training first, and then you let your employees surprise you,' he said. 'You have to have a little bit of confidence in training ahead... of the agenda.'
Mr Wong said that measuring the return on investment is difficult and often unsatisfactory, and instead suggested that employers consider the potential losses from not training their staff.
'If I don't train, don't invest, what will be my loss?' he said.
Ultimately, the panellists agreed that thriving in a skills-first future requires a mindset shift.
In response to the closing question on one important skill or mindset that is essential in that future, Mr Goel said: 'It's learning agility, the ability to learn, unlearn and relearn.'
'This is the No. 1 skill today for an individual,' he said. 'The rate at which you can learn will determine how competitive you are in the future.'
Moving towards a skills-first workforce: Key quotes from the forum
People at core
'A skills-first company starts from the point of view that what you put on the table is your comparative advantage, as your capabilities, stems from the skills of your employees.' - Mr Tan Kok Yam, chief executive of SkillsFuture Singapore
Shifting emphasis
'The resume that demonstrates transferable skills, soft skills and willingness to learn matches the skills-first approach that we want to have.' - Mr Joseph Wong, managing director at Cragar Industries
Ability to learn
'The ability to learn, unlearn and relearn... The rate at which you can learn will determine how competitive you are in the future.' - Mr Sagar Goel, managing director and partner at Boston Consulting Group
Transforming culture
'You are truly 'skills first' when your job descriptions, your goals and your people are tagged more by skills than by descriptions of work to be done.' - Ms Ong Chin Yin, chief people officer at Grab