Staffing firms and recruiters are reporting quite a bit of difficulty in sourcing qualified candidates for many positions. As a result, some organizations have begun to offer online courses to help job seekers develop the skills they'll require to get the positions they want.
These courses can cover topics like HTML 5 and other computer tasks. Candidates who are otherwise qualified may lack up-to-date skills due to being out of work for some time or simply not having needed to use those skills in their last position. Human resources administration professionals should take note of this development, as it may be helpful in their own organizations.
The online courses some companies offer are called massive open online courses, or MOOCs. This is not a new innovation in the world of online learning, though it has previously been used in academic rather than professional settings. Free online courses from major universities take this form most often. They could also be well suited to helping candidates and employees in their professional development and training. MOOCs could be used to train temporary workers in the basics of their positions before they arrive on-site, for example, or they might be offered to candidates who are lacking only a few qualifications on their resumes.