Manager's Perception of Skills Mismatch in Spanish Companies

Abstract

This paper addresses the problem of skills mismatch for the 16-24 age cohort in Spain. Our research objective is to survey managers of companies that operate in Spain and reveal their perception of the mismatch phenomenon. We hypothesize that "cherry-picking" the most talented workers and "crowding-out" the less skilled workers has contributed to the existence of skills mismatch. Our prediction was confirmed by our survey results and by other qualitative responses of business managers. We found evidence of overqualification and talent underutilization in Spanish organizations. Public policy measures should be taken to reduce this skills gap especially in the following directions: improving access to vocational education, offering career counseling and entrepreneurship education in schools and implementing an industrial model that would attract foreign investment in Spain.