Career anchors and emotional intelligence as predictors of human resource staff graduateness skills and employability attributes

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine whether employees' career anchors and emotional intelligence significantly predict their graduateness skills and employability attributes. A quantitative survey design was used. Primary data were collected from a non-probability sample of 67 participants employed in a human resource capacity. The participants were enrolled for undergraduate and postgraduate studies in the field of business management at an open distance learning higher education institution. Multiple regression analyses identified the pure challenge, entrepreneurial creativity and service/dedication to a cause career anchors and perceiving and managing emotions as significant predictors of the participants' graduateness skills and attributes. The general management competence and pure challenge career anchors were also found to be significant predictors of the participants' career self-management and career resilience. In view of employers' rising expectations of the graduateness and employability of their current and prospective graduate employees, the study contributed novel insights that can be used in constructing targeted development tools for cultivating the mindsets, skills and attributes associated with employees' graduateness and employability.