9,000+ people take part in KKEMs soft skill training in three months

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Soft skills are the most important skillset in the job market today. Not everyone in a crowd may be strong in this area, but securing a job remains essential. To help aspirants of all age groups to get into their dream job, the Kerala Knowledge Economy Mission (KKEM) have stepped forward to give support on the soft skills part. Marking a remarkable feat in their journey, the KKEM has already provided soft skills training to over 9,396 people of different age groups in the last three months, as part of its Soft Skills Training for Jobs programme. The training is a free voluntary service, where expert trainers across the state will mentor the applicants in soft skills without taking any payment. The applicants can avail these three-hour-long training sessions for free. Close to 474 people have expressed their willingness to mentor the participants, of which 102 have already been involved in their 219 completed sessions. The sessions will be held as per the demands of communities or educational institutions, where the participants will be trained in resume building, interview readiness and confidence building. The project is envisioned as a community supporting initiative, where people help people without any money involved. It was not just during the floods that Malaylis stood up for their community, said Anoopa Narayanan, senior programme manager at K-DISC. Stating that people from different groups- from graduates and post-graduates, to foreign returnees and women with career gaps- attend these sessions, she mentioned that the trainers who take soft skills mentoring for a huge sum outside are dedicatedly willing to do mentoring here. Freelance soft skills trainer Mohammed P Hashim, who has been associated with KKEM, explained that the vibe is completely different here when compared to a college training session. People are very focused on getting a job. But to most of them, even the basic things we explain- including the usage of AI in resume selection- would be completely new, he said. Adding that many people approach KKEMs sessions with a premonition that it would not be of much use as it is freely done by the government, Hashim said that none of them have left the sessions with such a feeling. Job trajectory Programme began on: 19 May 2025 219 Number of sessions held Number of willing mentors: 474 Number of involved mentors: 102 9,396 Total participants: Most number of participants: Kannur (2320) Key features of the sessions Free sessions in Resume Building, Interview Readiness, Confidence Building Sessions will be held community based or through institutions Anyone willing to mentor can contact KKEM No remuneration for mentors, fully volunteered