What Are Transferable Skills?

As a job seeker, you know how important it is to make sure that you’re qualified for the open position that you want. To do that, you need to review that position’s job description to ensure that you have the skills needed for that role. 

But what if your skill set doesn’t perfectly align with the employer’s expectations? Well, transferable skills can often help you close that skill gap.

In this guide, we’ll help you learn to identify transferable skills and provide examples of transferable skills that employers are looking for in new job candidates. 

What are transferable skills?

The key to understanding transferable skills is to think about the types of abilities that can be useful in almost every job and industry. While some skills are primarily useful in certain specific job roles or industries, you can use your transferable skills in virtually any job you pursue throughout your career. 

These types of skills include both hard technical abilities and soft interpersonal skills and can be acquired in a variety of ways, including 

• Education

• Training

• Volunteering

• Hobbies

• Work experience

Like most job-specific skills, they can be developed and improved over time and are highly valued by most employers.

Why are transferable skills important?

Many of the most prized transferable skills are used every day by employees in most industries. These abilities can include vital interpersonal skills, common technical skills, and abilities that are essential for managing yourself and others. Employers who know that you possess relevant transferable skills may be eager to hire you if you have the right kind of transferable skills.

Of course, those transferable skills are still valuable even when you already possess all of the required skills. In fact, an employer who has to choose between you and another equally qualified candidate may be more likely to give you the job when you can also demonstrate useful transferable skills.

9 Examples of transferable skills

To understand why these abilities can be so vital for your job search and career growth, it’s helpful to consider some key transferable skill examples. Here are nine resume transferable skills that are sure to attract any employer’s attention.

1.      Communication

Communication skills are one of the most important transferable skills. Every job requires some level of communication, whether written or verbal. Employes always want to know that prospective employees can communicate ideas and information to colleagues, superiors, and customers. These skills can include:

• Writing skills used in reports, documentation, and proposals

• Public speaking skills

• Nonverbal communication

• The ability to give and receive feedback

• Email etiquette

• Active listening

2.      Teamwork

Most jobs require you to work well with others, which is why companies are always looking for candidates who possess great teamwork skills. These abilities are also relevant for almost any industry and deserve to be ranked highly on any transferable skills list. Some examples of teamwork skills include:

• Collaboration

• Relationship building

• Reliability

• Self-awareness

• Emotional intelligence

• Goal-oriented

3.      Adaptability

In today’s rapidly changing economy, companies need employees who are able to adapt to new ideas and new ways of meeting customer needs. The ability to meet new challenges while remaining productive is a highly valued transferable skill that could set you apart from other candidates. Adaptability skills can include:

• The ability to learn quickly

• Positive attitude toward change

• Patience

• Growth mindset

• Resilience

• Curiosity

• Resourcefulness

• Persistence

• Effective stress management

4.      Organization

Employers expect their workers to be organized as they perform duties. Well-organized individuals are able to manage tasks, workspace, and interpersonal interactions in an efficient and productive manner. Some examples of great organizational skills include:

• Ability to prioritize

• Detail-oriented

• Effective task management

• Planning and scheduling

• Self-motivation

5.      Problem-solving

The ability to solve problems is one of the most important transferable skills any job seeker can possess. Every company encounters challenges on a regular basis and relies on competent, innovative employees to help it find solutions. These highly valued transferable skills can include:

• Observation skills

• Data analysis

• Brainstorming

• Solution evaluation

• Creativity

6.      Technical skills

As technology has advanced and changed the workplace in remarkable ways, many companies need employees with transferable technical skills. While these skills are task-oriented, they have broad application in a wide variety of industries. For example:

• Computer literacy

• Search engine optimization

• Artificial intelligence

• Cloud computing

• Coding

• Marketing

• Digital media

• Finance

7.      Project Management

Companies rely on employees with project management skills to keep their business activities on track. Even if you’re not pursuing a Project Manager job, your ability to manage projects will often provide you with an advantage over rival job seekers. Some examples of these transferable skills include:

• Motivational skills

• Cost and benefit management

• Time management

• Budgeting

• Risk management

• Negotiation

• Project planning

• Quality control

8.      Critical and analytical thinking

Companies are always on the lookout for critical and analytical thinkers since the ability to analyze and critically examine data and other information is essential for identifying solutions to challenges. Candidates who possess these transferable skills often have a leg up on rival job seekers.

• Forecasting

• Predictive modeling

• Strategic planning

• Diagnostic skills

• Reporting

• Process analysis

9.      Management and leadership

Management and leadership abilities are among the most important skills to include in any list of transferable skills. Many companies prize job candidates who possess the skills needed to organize teams, inspire others, and achieve shared goals. These skills can include abilities like:

• Decision-making

• Delegation

• Conflict resolution

• Goal setting

• Empathy

• Initiative

• Self-motivation

How can transferable skills help your resume?

Transferable skills can be an invaluable addition to your resume and increase your appeal to prospective employers in a variety of industries and job types. These skills can often help you demonstrate your ability to adapt to a variety of roles, quickly learn new skills, and provide immediate value for any company that hires you.

Those benefits are especially important for career changers and recent graduates who may not have all of the skills needed for a particular job. By including relevant transferable skills in your resume, you can show employers that you could still be a valuable addition to their team.

Job Placement Services

After working with us, job seekers earn 7% more on average – Start now.

Book a Free Consultation

How to showcase transferable skills in your resume

To effectively communicate your transferable skills to employers, you’ll need to learn how to include them in your resume. That process begins with a thorough review of the job description to identify all of the skills the employer is looking for. Make a list of your transferable skills and identify those that best align with the job duties and skill qualifications.

You’ll want to add those transferable skills to three different sections of your resume: 

• The resume summary

• Skills section

• Work experience

Resume summary

The resume summary is a great place to highlight the most important transferable skills you want employers to see. Simply add one or two of the most relevant abilities into this brief section and try to include an achievement that shows how you’ve used your transferable skills to create value as an employee. For example:

Creative problem solver with four years of experience using critical and analytical thinking skills to identify and implement solutions. Strong written and verbal communication abilities, team building, and leadership skills. Negotiated, designed, and implemented more than two dozen client projects worth more than $20 million in revenue.

Skills section

Your list of transferable skills should include several relevant abilities that you can include within your resume skill section. Begin that section by listing any skills you possess that align with the job description qualifications. Make sure you use the same terms found in the job description to ensure the company’s applicant tracking system sees those keywords in your resume.

You can then add important transferable skills to that list to create a more comprehensive snapshot of your capabilities. You should try to aim for either nine or twelve skills. To save space and set this section apart from the rest of the resume, your list should be in bullet point form – with the entire section formatted into two or three columns. For example:

• Skill #1

• Skill #2

• Skill #3

• Skill #4

• Skill #5

• Skill #6

• Skill #7

• Skill #8

• Skill #9

Work experience section

You also need to include some of those transferable skills in your work experience section. Here, you will want to use those skills in your work achievements and include real numbers to show how you used those abilities to generate value for your employer. For example:

Company Name, Location, Employment Dates

Job Title

• Reorganized office communication processes, eliminating 20% of wasteful communication and reducing time on task by 10%.

• Identified redundancies in client onboarding processes and designed new systems that improved onboard speed by 35%.

• Built and led a 30-person team that successfully implemented the merger of ABC Corp and DEF Inc., achieving alignment goals three weeks before deadline and 30% under budget.

Transferable skills can be key to your career success!

As you progress throughout your career, there will almost certainly be times when you find yourself falling short of a job’s stated skill requirements. Don’t let that discourage you from applying! Chances are that at least a few of your top transferable skills may help you close that skill gap in your resume and give you a real chance to land that interview and job offer.

Not sure which transferable skills you need to include in your resume? Get your free resume today and let our experts provide the answers you’re looking for!