Experts say 'learnability' is the most important skill you'll need to stay relevant at your job. Here's what it is, and how to tell if you have it
- When you're looking for a job, it's important to show you're willing to learn and grow.
- According to Steve Cadigan, former vice president of talent at LinkedIn, you can do that by talking about skills you've developed in previous roles.
- Other hiring managers say they're seeking evidence of a "growth mindset" during job interviews.
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If you want to ensure you have a job in the next decade, you'd best be able to flaunt your "learnability."
According to a report from staffing and recruiting firm ManpowerGroup, "learnability," or "the ability and desire to quickly grow and adapt one's skillset to stay employable for the long term," is a key skill employers will be looking for.
Stefano Scabbio, president of Mediterranean, Northern, and Eastern Europe at Manpower, previously told Business Insider that, given the rapid shift in desirable skills, "learnability is the only driver that can help you move forward in your career."
"Learnability" might sound like an empty buzzword. But ask Steve Cadigan, founder of Cadigan Talent Ventures and the former vice president of talent at LinkedIn, and he'll tell you the ability to "learn and apply quickly" really will "differentiate you from the competition" - and it comes down to how you frame your work experience.
Cadigan said you can demonstrate your learnability in a job interview by talking about past situations in which "you faced something new, you learned it, and you applied it."
For example, maybe you had to learn a new programming language in your last job. Or, if you work in media, maybe you've become adept at using social media and SEO techniques to promote your stories.
Cadigan said it's important to show "that you not only learned [new skills], but you applied them." That gives you credibility in the eyes of a prospective employer, he added.
Many hiring managers are seeking evidence of a job candidate's willingness to learn and grow
Even hiring managers who don't use the term "learnability" are likely looking for it. Traci Wilk, senior vice president of people at The Learning Experience and a former HR exec at Starbucks, previously told Business Insider that she values a "growth mindset" in job candidates. ("Growth mindset" is a term coined by the psychologist Carol Dweck, and it means that you believe your talents can be developed.)
Wilk likes to ask candidates about challenging situations they've faced in their career. She wants to see them share some "reflection or a postmortem that they may have done after the situation, how they've taken that and applied it into future situations."
Cadigan said he sometimes works with job-seekers in their 40s and 50s who worry that they haven't kept up with technological advances. But when he sits down with them and looks at their work over the last five years, he often finds they have learned a lot, and more importantly, they're excited about what they've learned.
"Would that be meaningful in the eyes of an employer?" Cadigan said. "The answer is, absolutely."