Managing Competences of Generation Y and Z in the Opinion of the Employees in the Modern Business Services Sector in Poland in the Post-Pandemic Period

Abstract

The article deals with the issue of changes and competence needs occurring in the work environment related to the increasingly developed Modern Business Services (MBS) sector in Poland. The section “Competencies of Tomorrow and Education of the Future” devotes special attention to showing the specific impact of soft/hard skills on teaching methodologies and, secondly, how soft/hard skills are linked to education for sustainable development. In order to answer the research questions posed, a survey was conducted. The target group covered by the research was people employed in the modern business services industry, representing the youngest generational groups, defined as Y (Millennials—the generation of people born between 1980 and 2000) and Z (the post-2000 generation just entering the workforce). The research was quantitative. Specifically, the results of the research should provide answers to the following research questions: (1) Were the competencies acquired during school education (high school, college) useful in performing professional tasks? (2) Which of the competencies acquired during education are most frequently used when performing professional tasks? (3) Which of the future required competencies (knowledge and skills) necessary/expected when performing professional tasks were not acquired during education? (4) Do employers value and use the competences acquired by employees during their education? (5) In addition to “hard” (technical) competences, do employers also check so-called “soft” (social/personal) competences during the recruitment process? (6) To what extent are the so-called “soft” competences, i.e., social/interpersonal and personal, becoming important in the modern business services sector, according to employees? The research was intended, on the one hand, to show the direction of expected changes in competencies, i.e., the range of knowledge and skills that is becoming necessary today from the point of view of the employer and the requirements for employees, and on the other hand to diagnose whether there is a discrepancy between the current educational systems at the level of secondary and higher education and the needs reported by employers of the sector under study. The research confirmed that the contemporary education system is not sufficient to prepare competent personnel for the modern business services sector.

1. Introduction

The modern world is characterized by great volatility. This also applies to the labor market, which requires increasingly sophisticated competencies. Remote and hybrid work models and the accelerated digitization of human resources are processes that have been introduced in most organizations around the world as a result of the outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic [1,2,3,4,5,6]. This digital revolution in the workplace was forced by extraordinary circumstances, so its impact was not anticipated beforehand; at the same time, a whole new reality of work was created. For this reason, the digitization of work and Human Resources (HR) processes is bringing organizations closer to the ideal of sustainability. This can be seen to a large extent in the modern business services sector [7].

Additional advantages of working in the sector in question are very favorable employment conditions and great opportunities for professional development compared to other industries. However, the requirements for candidates are high, including very good knowledge of at least English and competence in Information Technology (IT). In addition, an increasingly expected type of competence concerns so-called social skills, also referred to as “soft” competencies.

At the same time, the rapid growth of the MBS sector raises questions about the requirements for people employed in the sector in question and the so-called “demand” for specific competencies on the part of companies providing services in the MBS sector. Hence, the research problem posed also relates to the adaptation of Polish educational systems to the needs of modern labor market sectors, as follows:

Do and how do employees of Generation Y and Z use their competencies acquired during education (high school and/or college) in the work process at companies in the modern business services sector, and which competencies are most often expected and required by employers in this sector?

As an original and innovative contribution, the conducted research mainly intended, on the one hand, to show the real demand of the modern market for specific competencies, and on the other hand, to diagnose the adaptation of Polish education systems to the ever-changing needs of the modern labor market.

Therefore, specific research questions included questions such as: Have competencies acquired during schooling (high school, college) proven useful in performing professional tasks? Which of the competencies acquired during education are most frequently used when performing professional tasks? Which of the future required competencies (knowledge and skills) necessary/expected to perform professional tasks were not acquired during education? Do employers value and use the competences acquired by employees during their education? In addition to the “hard” (technical) competences, do employers check the so-called “soft” (social/personal) competences in the recruitment process? To what extent are the so-called “soft” competences, i.e., social/interpersonal and personal, becoming more important in the modern business services sector, according to employees?

The implementation of the survey was carried out using quantitative research methods, which include the survey technique. In this case, due to the large dispersion of the surveyed population, the CAWI method was used. Computer-Assisted Web Interview (CAWI) is an information collection technique used in quantitative market and opinion research where the respondent is asked to complete a survey electronically. The survey included a total of 509 respondents, including 195 men and 314 women, age-wise categorized as Generation Y (those born in the 1980s and 1990s) and Generation Z (those born after 1995), employed in various companies operating in the modern business services sector. It should also be mentioned that the employee surveys presented in the article were preceded by preliminary research conducted by the authors among executives in the modern business services sector [8].

The article consists of an Abstract, an Introduction, a Literature Review that includes sub-sections on the modern business services sector, tomorrow’s skills and education of the future and Generations Y and Z and the challenges of the modern labor market and a Results and Discussion Section that analyzes and presents the research results and conclusions.

2. Literature Review

2.1. Modern Business Services Sector

In the literature, the modern business services industry is often defined by four groups of entities: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) centers, Shared Service Centers (SSCs), IT services and Research and Development (R&D) centers [9,10].

These processes include customer service, human resources and payroll, financial services, IT user support, research activities and product development, computer application development and maintenance, server support and IT infrastructure management, among others [11].

Estimates show that by far the sector is dominated by IT services, which employ approx. 33% of employees. Second are financial and accounting services—about 22% of employment—while customer contact services are about 15% [3]. Companies are setting up centers in countries where it is easy to find qualified staff, there is adequate technical infrastructure and, above all, labor costs are not high—compared to the home location [12]. In recent years, the business services sector in Poland has been developing very dynamically. Our country is a leader in this industry among the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Already in 2014, Kraków ranked highest in Europe, and ninth in the world, in the “2014 Tholons Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations”, a ranking of the world’s most attractive cities for outsourcing investments [12]. In addition to these business services, others are located in other major urban centers, such as Lodz, Wroclaw, Katowice and the Upper Silesia Metropolis, Bydgoszcz, Warsaw, Tricity, Poznan, Rzeszow, Szczecin and Lublin [13]. Currently, there is a clear trend in the modern business services sector to change from quantitative processes to qualitative processes. More than half (53.8%) of all processes are knowledge-based processes [8]. These changes will obviously generate a demand for employees with special competencies and who are highly qualified, mainly in the area of new technologies, but also possessing social competencies, which are increasingly valued today.

2.2. Competencies of Tomorrow and Education of the Future

The notion of competence as the totality of an employee’s knowledge, skills and experience has been circulating around in the capital market for a long time. The challenge, however, is to keep up with matching education systems and educational programs to the competence needs of the labor market. Recently, the speed of changes occurring in the labor market has become increasingly dynamic and is dictated, on the one hand, by the rapid development of modern industries of the economy, and on the other, by the ongoing social changes. This necessitates the rapid development of competencies referred to as the competencies of tomorrow or the competencies of the future [8].

The challenge for those responsible for creating the future image of education is not only to create a new institutional framework but above all to take into account the current needs and changes in the labor market. New forms of education should take into account the constant focus on acquiring new knowledge, forming skills and developing competencies in every possible way, such as in connection with work, forms of life activity, self-development, cooperation or future professional roles.

Among the many competencies of tomorrow, the most commonly mentioned are:

• Sense making: the ability to discover but also to give deeper meaning to what we want to express.
• Social intelligence: the ability to communicate simply and directly and to relate to others.
• Novel and adaptive thinking: adaptive thinking, problem solving skills, coming up with solutions and answers outside the box.
• Intercultural competence: the ability to operate in a diverse cultural environment.
• Computational thinking: the ability to process large amounts of information through data-driven reasoning (especially drawing conclusions from big data).
• New media literacy: the ability to use new media, not just to post on Facebook at the right time. It also includes the ability to critically evaluate and develop content published in new media and to use it in effective communication.
• Transdisciplinarity: interdisciplinarity understood as the ability to read and understand concepts in multiple disciplines.
• Design mindset: design thinking or the ability to present and develop ways of working to achieve desired results.
• Cognitive load management: the ability to maximize post-cognitive functioning and assimilate multiple stimuli using a variety of tools and techniques.
• Virtual collaboration: the ability to collaborate virtually in an efficient, engaged manner and to be present in the work of a virtual team [14].

Another competency-related change that is often highlighted is related to the training of so-called “soft”, social or interpersonal competencies. Changes in the world mean that people need to adapt to new conditions more often. This requires adaptability, part of which is emotional attitude. Emotional competence also promotes people’s well-being and determines their health and happiness. The ability to understand and show feelings, the ability to build understanding with other people, to communicate in a clear and understandable way with empathy for the listener and to respond to change are considered so-called “soft competencies”, which are seen as key social competencies [15]. They also include flexibility in adapting to new working conditions and readiness to upgrade skills. Sometimes they are treated on a par with such competencies as industry knowledge, knowledge of foreign languages or operation of specialized computer programs [16].

Today’s education at various levels has found itself facing changes in both the social and economic worlds. Changes regarding competence needs in today’s labor market require outlining the future picture of education, primarily in terms of forms of education. Competence is, of course, developed in every possible way. First and foremost, it is related to work but also to forms of life activity, self-development, cooperation or future professional roles.

As one published report on future education reads: “Contemporary and future processes of change in the sphere of education are multifaceted and caused by a wide variety of factors. Changes in education relate to fundamental questions: Who to teach and for what purpose? What to teach? With what methods and tools to do it? How to organize teaching? Who to involve in it and what results to expect?” [17].

The authors of the cited report say that competencies and skills are as important as knowledge. They believe that curricula should include learning how to think critically and how to properly evaluate arguments. In their view, there should be content that equips people with the tools to evaluate arguments and evidence. It is of utmost importance that modern educational systems include a place for free expression and debate. Increasingly, there is talk about the so-called education of useful competencies (real life skills education), having in mind both “hard” competencies, i.e., those related to the performance of specific professional activities, and “soft” competencies—social. Thus, education of useful competencies includes both challenge-focused education, competency-focused education and capacity building.

The beginning of positive changes in education should start with asking the following question:

“Why and who do we want to educate?” Increasingly, there is talk of the so-called practical aspect of knowledge, or equipping students with the competencies to put it to practical, useful use. Thus, it is important not only to impart theoretical knowledge but also to teach skills to cope with real problems and social challenges. The school should prepare both for social life and shape the ability to adapt flexibly to constantly changing economic conditions.

Most often, it is emphasized that changes in teaching methodology should concern the introduction of such elements as:

• Teaching through engagement—teaching through engagement is teaching through action. It is not focused on memorizing specific batches of theoretical material but on intuitive understanding of specific cognitive content;
• Education through experience and experimentation—its basis is education closely linked to the acquisition of experience;
• The concept of cooperating classrooms—combines the idea of acquiring knowledge with the acquisition of social competence;
• Service learning—this learning model integrates school learning with community service. Its primary function is to combine learning and reflection with engagement and social responsibility;
• Flipped classroom model—its basis is the assumption that the students, learning from each other, are most responsible for the learning process. In the flipped classroom model, it is the students themselves who choose the format of the educational process and the tools they want to use (the format of educational materials is to ensure the comfort of the students themselves);
• Teaching emotional competence—in the modern world, the role of emotional competence is increasing. Changes in the world make it necessary for people to adapt to new conditions more often. Emotional competence also promotes people’s well-being and determines their health and happiness;
• Network education—the development of education is increasingly determined by the dynamics of decentralization processes. Mobile technologies make education a networked process. Those who acquire knowledge and skills join the global educational network and acquire knowledge through digital devices;
• Schools as community hubs—this signifies a sense of belonging to a community and the realization that this belonging allows one to take effective action for the well-being of its members. Collective efficacy is thus a willingness to act for the benefit of the community of which one is a member;
• Do it yourself education (DIY education)—one such solution is, as already described, the decentralization and deinstitutionalization of the education system;
• Personalized university—in the educational formula of “we-university”, education takes place through the choice made by the participants in the educational process [17].

Socio-economic systems today are mainly based on innovation and economic development in various sectors, including in a special way in modern business services, is based on the development of creativity and innovative solutions created by employees. It is well known that the skills of the future include the development of broad digital skills. The more people have highly developed digital skills, the greater the chances of creating, for example, paperless jobs or remote working. This, in turn, has a positive impact on environmental protection and sustainable development. For example, not having to commute to work already has a significant impact on reducing carbon dioxide emissions from cars and vehicles used to commute to work.

An increasingly used way to foster innovation and creativity is to develop the idea of problem-centered education (problem-based learning), while the current education system often still assumes that the teacher is treated as a depository of knowledge and students are passive recipients of knowledge. The importance of simultaneous training of soft and hard competences for sustainable development has long been emphasized by educational researchers [18,19]. Today, competence-oriented education is also important. Soft, communicative competences are an important aspect of education for sustainable development [20]. Many researchers point out that competences should be shaped in relation to the needs of the labor market and shape sustainable societies [21]. The shaping of competences for the modern business services sector fits into this trend. However, there is relatively little research on the necessary competences in this sector.

It is worth adding that the process of improvement in the field of education, broadly defined, is already becoming clearly noticeable. The requirements arising from EU directives, as well as those reported by the socio-economic environment, have an increasing impact on the changes made to the programs of schools, which also need to become increasingly innovative in the proposed forms of education, in order to meet the demands of competition.

Nevertheless, in order for the process of improving and adapting educational programs to be based on the actual needs of the labor market, it is important to accurately identify and continuously monitor these needs, which is served, among other things, by the research conducted and discussed in this article.

The soft skills most often mentioned in the literature include team management, ability to delegate tasks, negotiation skills, communication skills, conflict resolution skills, time management, motivation to work, willingness and drive to develop, creativity and ability to work under time pressure.

2.3. Generation Y and Z and the Challenges of Today’s Labor Market

With the rapid advancement of technology and the rapid development of the information society, generational changes are occurring at an accelerating pace, and successive generations are becoming more and more different from each other. When potential employers think about hiring employees, they most often define the competencies they should have. They describe the expected formal knowledge and social skills. This creates a picture of candidates who will be able to meet the company’s goals. The starting point, however, is the knowledge of intergenerational differences in the workforce [22].

Generation Z in the labor market is assumed to be those born after 1995, who are very connected to new technologies. It is recognized that they are usually individualistic, ambitious, aware and open to new opportunities. When choosing a profession, they are most often guided by market demand and the future of the profession. By virtue of certain predispositions and special skills, mainly the IT competencies expected today, they will be the main force for the development of modern companies. On the other hand, however, it should be remembered that they represent a new challenge for employers, who must adapt to their expectations and values [23].

On the one hand, Generation Z is focused on fast and dynamic careers, working in comfortable conditions and drawing knowledge from experienced employees, while on the other hand, a very important factor for this group is the so-called work–life balance. It is also said that those born after 1995 have even initiated quiet quitting, or “quiet departure” from the established corporate patterns that were the meaning of life for their parents and grandparents. Young people also pay attention to whether the company they apply to is socially responsible, supports new talent, levels the labor market playing field and helps develop new skills. They are also assertive and able to set boundaries, which they sometimes show already during the interview. They definitely prefer to be held accountable for the result rather than the hours spent in front of a computer. In addition, they expect openness and prompt feedback from superiors. They rely on honesty and authenticity in their relationships [24].

Generation Y—referred to as Millennials or the “Digital Generation”—are those born between 1980 and 2000. Unlike their parents’ generation, the so-called Generation X, they are familiar with technological innovations and actively use digital media. Nevertheless, most of them still remember the offline era (which can no longer be said of Generation Z). This is considered a generation that actively uses digital technologies in every area of life, is characterized by openness and considerable self-confidence, is resistant to authority and often lives in “information bubbles”. This is also a generation already raised in the realities of the free market. In our country, their generational experience is the opening of Poland to the West and its accession to the European Union [25].

When describing Generations Y and Z, the literature most often refers to the characteristics that characterize them and the related expectations and requirements of the young generation of workers in relation to the labor market. The original contribution of the authors’ research on competencies, presented in this article, is to reverse the point of view, that is, to try to capture not so much the expectations of the young generation of employees in relation to employers but to show their range of competencies and skills acquired during education, as well as the expectations and requirements for specific competencies placed on employees by the most modern and rapidly developing business industries, which most often employ representatives of Generations Y and Z, and to diagnose the competency gap.

3. Materials and Methods

The basic, assumed research problem of the presented research concerned the verification of whether and how the employees of Generations Y and Z use their competences acquired during education (high school and/or college) in the work process in companies of the modern business services sector and which competences are most often expected and required by employers in this sector.

The implementation of the survey was carried out using quantitative research methods, which include the survey technique. In this case, due to the large dispersion of the surveyed population, the Computer-Assisted Web Interview (CAWI) technique using survey software was used. CAWI is the collection of information from respondents on the basis of an electronic survey made available via the Internet. The main advantage of the method is its quick and efficient turnaround time [26].

The main advantages of the research method used were also its impersonal nature and standardized questions, time to reflect on the issues raised in the survey, guaranteed anonymity and efficiency of data processing (electronic survey).

A survey questionnaire was prepared for the study, consisting of 24 questions: closed, semi-open and open-ended, as well as metric questions.

Due to the specificity and complexity of the subject matter of the survey, classical scales such as Likert were not used, instead a three-point scale was used for simple questions: “yes, no, I don’t know”, while in the questions about specific future competencies and soft competencies, the respondents were presented with a ready-made range of answers that listed (based on the literature on the subject) the types of soft competencies and past competencies, leaving the possibility to add additional answers, and thus had the character of semi-open questions. In addition, the questionnaire used open-ended questions to collect respondents’ personal opinions on specific issues.

Respondents were recruited from among the companies acquired for the study, operating in the modern business services sector from all over Poland. The research was conducted at the turn of 2022/2023. A total of 509 respondents participated in the survey, including 195 men and 314 women, age-wise categorized as Generations Y and Z, employed in substantive positions, at various medium and large companies operating in the modern business services sector in various cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants in Poland (M = 35 years), while total work experience ranged from less than 1 year to 20 years (M = 11.92), with respondents working in their current position from less than 1 year to 20 years (M = 5.81).

The chart below (Figure 1) shows data on the respondents’ education:

Among the respondents, the vast majority had a university degree (78%), the next largest group was respondents in the process of studying (19%), while a small percentage of people had secondary or other education (3% in total). The most commonly attended school was a general high school, attended by more than half of the respondents (63%), while one in four respondents attended a technical school (25%) and the fewest people attended a specialized high school (11%) or other type of high school (2%) (see Figure 2).

The respondents varied considerably in terms of their positions. As they answered the position question in an open-ended form, their answers were categorized into more general positions (see

Table 1. Work position of the subjects (N = 509).

Category	N	%
IT specialist	3	0.59%
Analyst	18	3.54%
Assistant	12	2.36%
Engineer	13	2.55%
In a leadership position	55	10.81%
Bookkeeping	26	5.11%
Teacher	16	3.14%
Office worker	12	2.36%
Manager	39	7.66%
Logistics	8	1.57%
Expert	86	16.90%
Counselor	13	2.55%
Trader	15	2.95%
Employee of the HR department	8	1.57%
White collar worker	111	21.81%
Worker	44	8.64%
Other	30	5.89%

).

The largest number of respondents performed white-collar work, in the broad sense of the word, related to computer support, documentation at work or administrative matters (21.8%). The second largest group of people were specialists in various disciplines such as customer service specialist, controlling specialist, sales specialist, etc. (16.9%). Quite a number of people surveyed also held a managerial position (10.8%), while the smallest group of people were human resources and logistics employees (1.6%). For a detailed breakdown of the frequency of the remaining positions, see Table 1.

4. Results and Discussion

This section presents answers to questions about competencies acquired in education and their use in everyday work. The following analyses contain a collection of the most important responses, enriched with examples given by respondents in open-ended questions.

On the question of whether respondents feel that the competencies they acquired during their high school education and/or during their studies were sufficient to meet the demands of their current jobs, opinions are divided. Half of them clearly indicate that these competencies are not sufficient.

The rest of the people mostly believe that what they managed to acquire in high school or during their studies was sufficient for them to work (38%), however, among these people there are also those who find it difficult to answer this question unequivocally (12%) (see Figure 3).

In addition, respondents also disagree on their opinion of the knowledge and skills acquired in education. Slightly more than half of them believe that the knowledge and skills acquired during high school and college were useful in their current jobs (51.7%), however, the other, slightly smaller, portion of people do not share this opinion (48.3%).

The next question was: Which of the competencies acquired during education can be considered useful and used in the course of current professional tasks? Not all respondents indicated specific examples of competencies acquired during education. The number of respondents accounted for less than half of those surveyed. Sample responses along with the number of responding individuals are presented in four categories in

Table 2. Examples of competencies acquired during education.

Category	N	Examples
Theoretical knowledge	213	Philology, language skills, fundamentals of entrepreneurship, economics, marketing research, law, mathematics, physics, library science, book history, literature, general biology, human biology, toxicology, animal physiology, medical knowledge, risk management, organization of implementation work, human resource management, psychology
Technical/practical skills	179	Networking, ability to prepare multimedia presentations, negotiation and mediation, soldering, assembly of apparatus, wiring, econometrics, analysis, drawing conclusions, design of production systems, construction, ability to interact with other employees
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills	132	Solid Edge, programming, AutoCAD, MS Office suite, SolidWorks, Inventor, Visual, MATLAB, operation of statistical analysis software (GraphPad and Prism) and flow cytometry results (e.g., FlowJo)
Other	27	Creativity, critical thinking, reasoning, ability to work under time pressure, language competence, resourcefulness, business knowledge, soft skills, reading with understanding

. The first category was competencies understood as theoretical knowledge; in this regard, many varied examples were indicated, related to the names of subjects in college and high school (see Table 2).

Among respondents, the predominant responses were language skills, business fundamentals, economics, mathematics and management in the broadest sense (see Table 2).

In the context of practical skills, respondents most often indicated physical professional activities they learned in the education process, such as soldering, construction and assembly of apparatus, but also activities related to mental work such as networking, preparing multimedia presentations. As examples of ICT skills, respondents indicated knowledge of operating specific programs or office packages, among which the MS Office package was most often indicated, however, other programs such as AutoCAD, Solid Edge and SolidWorks also appeared. A small number of respondents (N = 27) also indicated competencies other than those categorized above; respondents’ answers mainly focused on soft competencies such as creativity, critical thinking, reasoning or the ability to work under time pressure.

Giving a general answer to the question of whether any soft skills training classes were implemented during high school education and/or during college, it can be concluded that for the majority of people in the training of any of these competencies, classes were not implemented during formal education (there was a preponderance of negative answers for each competency surveyed). The detailed distribution of responses is presented in

Table 3. Implementation of classes on specific competencies in high school/studies (N = 509).

Competence	Yes		No
	N	%	N	%
Managing a team of people, delegating tasks	198	38.9%	311	61.1%
The ability to negotiate	189	37.1%	320	62.9%
Communication skills	265	52.1%	244	47.9%
The ability to resolve conflicts	210	41.3%	299	58.7%
Managing your own time	206	40.5%	303	59.5%
Motivating yourself to work	172	33.8%	337	66.2%
Willingness and drive to grow	206	40.5%	303	59.5%
Creativity	226	44.4%	283	55.66%
Ability to work under time pressure	200	39.3%	309	60.7%

. Only in the area of developing communication skills did more than half of the respondents (52.1%) indicate that the training of this skill was implemented during education (see Table 3).

In addition, the respondents most often point to general school subjects and college classes, among which the following appear: economics, mathematics, psychology, social studies, finance, management, professional ethics, computer science, communication, negotiation, basics of entrepreneurship. In addition to these, the competencies of the future that the respondents were asked about are defined as specific skills that enable them to make decisions and perform tasks in the current work environment, and their development is essential for working in the MBS sector. The survey outlined the following competencies: team management, negotiation, communication, conflict resolution, managing one’s own time, creativity, motivating oneself to work, striving for development and working under time pressure. Respondents most often answered that these competencies were sufficient to meet employers’ expectations (47%), the second most frequently chosen answer was the opposite (35%), while the fewest respondents found it difficult to take a specific position on this topic (18%) (see Figure 4).

Figure 5 presents a summary of responses to the question about the competencies whose lack was most acute in the current workplace. This question was asked of those who indicated that the skills they had acquired did not satisfy their employer during recruitment. Most indicated the ability to negotiate, followed by team management and motivating oneself to work. The fewest people indicated a desire and drive for development and creativity (see Figure 5).

Respondents were also asked whether any of the listed competencies proved indispensable when performing professional tasks at their current workplace. The majority (56.2%) answered yes, and these individuals were additionally asked to indicate which competencies were essential to them. It turned out that the most indispensable was the ability to communicate, while the least indispensable was the desire and drive to develop (see Figure 6).

Half of the respondents believe that the current employer offered or organized courses or training in the improvement of future competencies (50.5%), while slightly fewer said that the employer did not offer or organize any courses or training in the improvement of competencies. Among the respondents, there were also a few who do not remember whether such situations occurred (6.7%).

However, some of the competencies were acquired only during the course of professional tasks, such as through refresher courses, apprenticeships and work experience. Among these, the most common were communication skills and self-management of time. The smallest number of respondents indicated that their creativity increased during their work (see Figure 7).

Respondents indicate that employers were unlikely to check soft competencies during an interview (64.4%), while a small portion of respondents went through such a verification process (35.6%). However, the researchers asked respondents which competencies were verified in any way. The results showed that in the largest number of people they were social intelligence and adaptive thinking. In a small number of people, employers paid attention to maximizing cognitive functioning and interdisciplinarity. Of the respondents, five people indicated that the employer verified other competencies than those listed in the question. Figure 8 shows which competencies were most often verified by the employer during recruitment (see Figure 8).

Respondents indicated that most often there was simply an interview, conducted by an employee from the HR department. In a sizable group of people, there was also competency testing, while psychological tests, as well as an interview with a psychologist, were not used with many MBS job applicants (see Figure 9).

Overwhelmingly, respondents agree that educational programs should be modified and adapted to train the cadres of the future (81%), while only one in ten think this should not be the case (10%) and even fewer (9%) have no opinion on the subject (see Figure 10).

Respondents also expressed opinions on whether soft competencies are necessary for the job they currently hold. Opinions on this topic were divided—49.5% believe they are not necessary, while 50.5% believe they are necessary.

By far the largest number of people responded that adaptive thinking and social intelligence were essential, and these responses received a large lead in terms of the number of indications. The fewest people appreciated the role of maximizing cognitive functioning and using new media (see Figure 11).

The next question was: Did respondents acquire some of the “soft” competencies during their school education and/or during their studies? Respondents were unlikely to have acquired such competencies during their education (69.0%), however, those who answered positively to this question (31.0%) were asked what these competencies were. As in the previous question, the largest number of respondents indicated social intelligence and adaptive thinking, while the smallest number indicated the ability to collaborate virtually in an efficient manner and the ability to maximize cognitive functioning (see Figure 12).

The respondents were further asked whether they believe that current school and university programs contain subjects/activities in which “soft” competencies are formed. Nearly half believe that current programs do not contain such subjects or activities (48%). The remainder are divided into those who have no opinion on the subject (28%) or agree that school programs contain such activities (24%) (see Figure 13).

Additionally, when asked about their opinion on the scope of soft skills classes, 38% of respondents said that the scope is sufficient and there are many such classes, while 38.7% think there should be more of them. Additionally, 17.7% think there are far too few of them. The rest (4.8%) have no opinion on the subject. The vast majority of people are in favor of mandatory teaching of soft skills in the formal education process (69.7%). The rest are skeptical (13.4%) or have no opinion (16.9%) on the subject.

At the end of the survey, they were asked whether their current employer requires them to demonstrate “soft” competencies in the course of their work tasks. Such a requirement at work was indicated by only one in three respondents (32%), for almost half of the people (47%) the employer pays attention to them but “hard” competencies are more important to them, while for one in five people (21%) only specific professional skills count (see Figure 14).

When asked whether the current employer organized any trainings or courses on improving “soft” skills, less than half of the respondents say yes (39.5%), but a larger group say that no trainings and courses were organized (44.8%). The rest do not remember such situations (15.7%). On the other hand, on the question of whether respondents believe that, at their current job, soft competencies are necessary for the proper implementation of professional tasks, the majority of respondents underestimate the role of soft competencies in the implementation of their professional duties (66.2%), with only one in three indicating that these skills are also necessary in daily work (33.8%).

5. Findings and Discussions

Thanks to the survey results obtained, it was possible to gather information on the views and opinions of the cadres/employees employed in the modern business services sector regarding the ways of acquiring competencies and skills necessary for the performance of tasks in the sector under study, as well as the needs and expectations arising from the “gaps” or deficiencies pointed out by the respondents, which at the same time provide an indication of what needs to be supplemented in this regard and what is expected by the employers in the sector under discussion.

A clear indication for schools and universities is the finding among half of the surveyed employees that the competencies acquired during education at both high schools and universities were not compatible with the needs of the labor market, in the area of the sector under study, so they proved to be useless at work. Nearly 38% of respondents, however, use the competencies acquired during education to some extent.

Opinions on the knowledge and skills gained in education were similarly shaped, meaning that nearly half believe they do not use them at work.

The fact that half of the surveyed workers also said that these skills are useful may mean that the skills provided by the higher and secondary education system are not significantly different from the needs of the current labor market, but it needs changes and improvements that should improve the system to keep up with the changing demands of the labor market, especially in sectors related to modern business services.

Among the most useful theoretical educational competencies, respondents point first to philological competencies and those directly related to the profession, such as the basics of entrepreneurship, science subjects with mathematics at the forefront or management knowledge in the broadest sense. In second place, they emphasize the usefulness of competencies related to the acquisition of hard, technical and ICT skills, and only at the very end are soft competencies listed, which may be related to the data resulting from the answers to the question on soft skills training.

The data show that, apart from the development of communication skills, in most of the respondents soft competencies were not formed during education. Slightly different was the assessment of preparation in the so-called competencies of the future, such as team management, negotiation, communication, conflict resolution, managing one’s own time, creativity, motivating oneself to work, striving for development and working under time pressure. Nearly 18% of the employees surveyed, in this case, had a problem taking a position on whether these competencies were acquired in the education process, which may mean that they never encountered the direct requirements for these competencies but also that they were not explicitly formed during education. A sizable percentage, however, of 47% felt that the competencies acquired in this area were sufficient to meet the requirements of the employer.

Among the competencies of the future, the lack of negotiation skills, ability to manage a team and ability to motivate oneself at work in the current workplace was most often indicated. These indications can be at the same time a clear recommendation regarding the need to include the training of these competencies in the canon of programs in schools and universities.

In addition to this, among the competencies needed when doing their jobs, the surveyed employees explicitly mentioned communication skills.

As indicated by the vast majority of respondents, the so-called formation of many needed soft competencies, so far, is not explicitly included in the educational process. This is especially true of the ability to collaborate virtually in an efficient manner and the ability to maximize cognitive functioning. As one might guess, the first of these competencies has begun to become increasingly important as the need for remote work becomes more widespread. The increase in the importance of soft skills in modern service sectors also shows a clear view among the surveyed employees that the formation of these skills should be included in mandatory teaching (almost 70%).

Based on the research, the following basic answers to the research questions were obtained:

(1)

Did the competencies acquired during school education (high school, college) prove useful when performing professional tasks? Rather not, as half of the respondents gave a negative answer to this question, and even 12% of the respondents did not have an opinion on this issue.

(2)

Which of the competencies acquired during education are most often used when performing professional tasks? The most frequent answers to this question were, in the following order: philological and entrepreneurial skills, mathematical or management skills, specific theoretical knowledge, technical/practical skills and ICT skills.

(3)

Which of the required future competencies (knowledge and skills) necessary/expected in the performance of professional tasks were not acquired during education? For the so-called future skills such as team management, negotiation, communication, conflict resolution, time management, creativity, motivation at work, continuous learning and working under time pressure, less than half of the respondents (47%) felt that the skills they had acquired in this area were sufficient to meet employers’ needs.

(4)

Do employers value and use the competencies obtained by employees during education? Employers largely underestimate the competences acquired by employees during their education, as half of the employees surveyed believe that the competences acquired during their education in both secondary schools and universities were not in line with the needs of the labor market and therefore proved to be useless at work, and only less than 38% of respondents use the competences acquired during their education at work to some extent. Furthermore, the opinions about the knowledge and skills acquired during education are very similar, which means that almost half of them believe that they do not use them at work.

(5)

In addition to “hard” (technical) competencies, do employers verify so-called soft (social/personal) competencies in the recruitment process? Not all employers verify soft skills during an interview, and only a small percentage of respondents underwent such verification (35.6%).

(6)

How important in the modern business services sector are so-called “soft” competencies, i.e., social/interpersonal and personal, becoming, according to employees? More than half of respondents believe that soft skills are essential in the modern business services sector.

All the above data translate into respondents’ opinions that educational programs should be modified as much as possible and adapted to train the cadres of the future (81.1%).

In addition, it is worth mentioning that according to the guidelines of the Ministry of Education and Science (MEN) in Poland, education for sustainable development should be implemented at all levels of education, from kindergarten through primary and secondary school to university. The subject elements of sustainable development (expanded to include the methodology of conducting education for sustainable development) should therefore be included in the curricula of all majors.

Even the very definition of sustainability is difficult to understand, not only for students but also for teachers themselves, because, as they themselves recognize, the subject of education for sustainable development is very complex. Among teachers, the term “sustainability” is best known by those involved in nature education. Of the students surveyed, 29% had never heard of education for sustainable development and only 10% were very familiar with the term. The level of familiarity with the term education for sustainable development is even lower among students in primary, middle and high schools. On the other hand, experts’ opinions on the introduction of education for sustainable development in higher education institutions are very general and apply only to certain fields of study (for more on this topic, see: https://www.gov.pl/web/srodowisko/badania-dotyczace-edukacji-dla-zrownowazonego-rozwoju (accessed on 16 August 2023)).

Therefore, there is a need to conduct courses for students of various majors in the knowledge of sustainable development and the methodology of conducting training for students of both primary and secondary schools, teachers and educators, as well as pre-school children and among entrepreneurs of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), taking into account the development of soft skills (this follows from the research presented earlier).

The theoretical knowledge, information, practical skills and methodological tools provided during the training courses should provide future graduates with a comprehensive knowledge of sustainable development (including Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)), thus facilitating the emphasis and implementation of these issues in pre-school and vocational education. At the same time, the sustainability content provided during undergraduate courses should encourage future educators to bring society closer to the essence of the links between economic, environmental and social problems, thus enabling the preparation of the next generation for active and responsible participation in the economic life of the country.

The aim of the proposed courses in education for sustainable development should therefore be to raise teachers’ awareness and competence in global education and all issues related to the overarching goals of sustainable development, as well as to provide practical skills in conducting training on sustainable development.

On the other hand, the skills that employees definitely lack and should, according to the respondents, also be formed in the education process are: managing a team of people and conflict resolution. Among other competencies indicated more often as not being acquired during education were: negotiation skills, working under time pressure, motivating oneself to work and creativity.

6. Conclusions

The main research problem of this study was the fit or mismatch between the Polish educational systems and the needs of the modern labor market sectors, and thus it was primarily a matter of identifying the so-called skills gaps and the needs of the modern labor market in terms of the demand for tomorrow’s skills. Therefore, the basic research problem is:

Do and how do Generations Y and Z employees use the competencies they have acquired during their education (high school and/or university) in the work process in companies in the modern business services sector, and which competencies are most often expected and required by employers in this sector?

The research described in the article was aimed, first of all, at showing the direction of expected changes in competences, i.e., the range of knowledge and skills expected by modern employers, especially in the area of the modern business market, and showing the mismatch between the current educational offer and the needs signaled by the labor market.

The contribution of the article is mainly that it should show, on the one hand, the real demand of the modern market for specific competences and, on the other hand, the necessity to adapt education systems to the constantly changing needs of the modern labor market. Thus, the research presented in the article, as well as the preceding survey of managers, was also supported by the available literature on the competencies of the future, including the increasingly valued soft skills, as well as the literature on the education of tomorrow and the expectations of the younger generation of workers.

Certainly, a limitation for the authors was the availability of literature on issues related to modern competencies and changes in the market dictated by the breakthrough caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, with all its consequences, which often permanently changed work systems, for example, expanding the scale of the provision of so-called remote work.

More research will probably be needed on the need for changes in educational systems at different levels to adapt them to the ever-changing needs of a fluid post-modern society. This direction of research should therefore be a natural consequence, undertaken in this research in an attempt to answer the question of what type of competence is currently most desirable in today’s modern business services market.

In publications devoted to the education of the personnel of the future, the necessity of attaching importance to the education of so-called “soft” (social/personal) competencies is clearly emphasized. At the same time, the vast majority of respondents say that training in so-called “soft” skills should be a mandatory part of school and university programs.

As the results of the presented research in the modern business services sector show, it seems almost obvious that it is necessary to educate students/students as future employees in accordance with the needs of employers and the labor market, which can thus give them a much better chance of employment in highly specialized companies and enterprises.

It will also contribute to strengthening the competitiveness of the regions, as well as to leveling disparities in development, which will lead to an increase in the internal cohesion of the regions, having a significant impact on the development dynamics of individual provinces.

Such solutions, as is known, permeate many areas of development and form the basis of the process of identifying smart specializations, which also correlate with the chosen fields of education. This, in turn, makes it possible to create individual programs for improving competencies and qualifications in the above-mentioned areas and thus allows improvement of the quality of education and training in correlation with the socio-economic environment by improving the skills, key competencies and professional qualifications of pupils and students in subsequent years, so as to always find an answer to the question: Does participation in training/studies and other forms of education have the right impact on improving and adapting soft and hard competencies to the current needs of the labor market?

In addition, it is recommended to continuously conduct evaluation studies on the impact of education on raising the desired social and professional competencies, on the basis of which it will be possible to unequivocally determine whether participation in the educational process has the right impact on raising and adapting skills to current and prospective requirements of the labor market.

In summary, it is also important to remember why the said evaluation is needed. This process is not only to check the state of knowledge of pupils or students, or the course of the educational process itself, but the specificity of such evaluation studies should be, first of all, to show the possibility of changes and improvements occurring in enterprises in correlation with the educational processes taking place.

In addition, education in the soft competencies of the future, such as computational thinking, new media literacy, cognitive load management and virtual collaboration, is crucial for sustainability, as the competencies can be integrated into education to promote the principles of sustainable development. More should be taught about how to collect, analyze and interpret environmental data, allowing for a better understanding of the impact of human activities on ecosystems in the future. In addition, it is worth teaching how to use ecological simulation tools to experiment with different scenarios and better understand the complex relationship between humans and the environment. It is also worth teaching how to effectively use social media to promote initiatives related to environmental protection, fighting social inequality, etc. Critical information evaluation skills, meanwhile, will help develop the ability to distinguish between reliable sources of information and fake news, and help understand how widely the media influence public opinion in the context of sustainable development.

It is also worth teaching cognitive load management in the context of mindfulness techniques that will help manage stress and improve concentration, which is important when dealing with complex sustainability issues.

Finally, rational planning and good organization are the keys to success, to avoid excessive cognitive load, which in turn will help focus on sustainability priorities.

For this reason, it is worth encouraging participation in international educational projects that require collaboration with participants or experts from different countries to solve sustainability problems on a global scale. Therefore, it is worth teaching how to effectively use remote working and virtual collaboration tools, such as online project platforms or video meetings, to enable people from different regions of the world to collaborate.

Integrating all of these soft competencies of the future in education will better prepare people to effectively engage in sustainable development efforts, as well as to understand and deal with the challenges of today’s globalized and increasingly technological world.

So, what is the role of Generations Y and Z in terms of soft and hard skills and their impact on teaching and learning sustainability and adherence to it? Generation Y is often seen as having developed soft skills, such as the ability to work together in teams, interpersonal communication and problem solving. This is a generation that grew up in an era of globalization and multiculturalism, which has positively affected their ability to work with diverse groups of people. As for hard skills, Generation Y also has solid technological skills. Representatives of Generation Y grew up in the era of the digital revolution, which has made them more familiar with technology than previous generations. Generation Y also shows an increased interest in sustainability and environmental issues. Generation Y tends to make informed purchasing decisions and be more involved in environmental efforts. In comparison, Generation Z is growing up in the digital age and is known for its ability to handle new technologies. However, due to their younger age, Generation Z representatives may need support in developing soft skills, such as communication and collaboration, which are also known to be crucial in the context of sustainability. On the other hand, Generation Z is very proficient in the field of modern technology, which means that its representatives can, in turn, very quickly pick up sustainability-related knowledge and technical skills, such as data analysis and the use of IT tools [27]. Although Generation Z is still relatively young, it is more engaged in sustainability issues than previous generations at that age. Representatives of Generation Z have access to a wide range of online information and may be more aware of environmental issues than other generations.

Certainly, both Generations Y and Z have the potential to use modern technology to better understand, track and address sustainability issues, as online platforms, apps and analytical tools can help educate about and engage with these very issues. Generation Y, meanwhile, can act as mentors and pass on their soft skills to Generation Z, while Generation Z can share their technical knowledge with Generation Y. Intergenerational cooperation can bring many benefits in teaching each other the skills necessary to implement and realize sustainability. In addition, fostering pro-environmental attitudes and a commitment to sustainability among both generations through education can contribute to a more sustainable future, as both generations have the potential to become leaders in environmental efforts. In conclusion, both Generation Y and Generation Z can play an important role in promoting sustainability by combining their soft and hard skills and using modern technology to solve environmental problems, and as we know, intergenerational cooperation and the right approach in education are key to achieving just that.

The conclusions of the research also relate to the reorientation of teaching methods to include soft and hard skills training in university programs and curricula, which has important further implications for both educators and students. University curricula should be adapted to include the development of both soft and hard skills. This means that not only vocational subjects should be offered but also courses that develop soft skills. Universities, on the other hand, should work with businesses and employers to understand what skills are most in demand in the labor market, so that curricula can be tailored to the real needs of specific industries. Moreover, it should be added that the training of soft skills should be a continuous process, not only in universities but also in vocational training or post-graduate education, and even in lifelong learning. It is worth mentioning that providing high school students with access to apprenticeships and internships gives them the opportunity to practically experience the role of certain competencies, not only hard but also soft, in order to further develop them in the real work environment. However, this also requires that educators are properly trained to develop soft skills in students in order to adapt their teaching approach. Reorienting teaching methods to include both soft and hard skills in curricula and teaching is a key step in preparing students for success both in the labor market and in their personal lives. It will also enable society to better address the challenges of sustainability, innovation and solving global problems.

Finally, C.K. Prahalad and G. Hamel, in their publication on corporate competencies, wrote that top managers will be judged by their ability to identify, cultivate and exploit the core competencies that enable firm growth. This means that one of the most important issues in managing a company will increasingly be the ability to efficiently manage the resource that competencies represent [28].

Certainly, the pandemic crisis has led to many changes in the labor market, although it is too early to say with certainty that the recent pandemic coupled with digitization processes have paved the way for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Societies, economies, institutions and organizations are being tested to see if they can adopt global thinking in terms of fairness and responsibility, and studies are being conducted in companies on how to implement even more digitization and make the necessary changes to get a few more steps closer to the goals of the sustainable company ideal. And creating a good, balanced, “humanistic” organization is a milestone in paving the way to a fairer and more egalitarian society. Digitizing work processes and human resources helps organizations achieve their sustainability goals.

Impacts may be seen:

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in the environmental area to reduce CO₂ emissions (reducing business travel, reducing daily commuting to offices, introducing remote recruitment processes and remote and hybrid work models. Remote working also further increases the number of female employees and female representatives in the leadership team, making companies more diverse and inclusive);

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on social issues to improve diversity, equality and inclusion status (remote or hybrid work is more favorable for women, as it allows them to reconcile work and domestic responsibilities).

The topic of digitization and its impact on sustainability is of great importance to business. It is also largely relevant to the modern business services sector. Digitalization points the way to new resource management processes and policies and helps build a long-term strategy that takes into account social changes, the needs of individuals and environmental aspects. In this sense, digitalization and modern technologies help create a sustainable organization and a sustainable society, provided that education processes are properly prepared.