Closing the Suitability Skills Gap: how to Boost Your RTO’s Outcome Standards with Contextualised Learning Resources

By Contextualised Learning Resources

In today’s fast-changing workforce, having a qualification is no longer enough. Employers across Australia are consistently reporting that while graduates may hold certificates, they often lack the workplace-ready skills needed to thrive. This issue, known as the “suitability skills gap”, is highlighted in the National Jobs and Skills Roadmap as a major barrier to solving Australia’s skills shortages.

For Registered Training Organisations (RTOs), this gap presents both a challenge and an opportunity. By improving the quality and relevance of training resources, RTOs can produce job-ready graduates, meet government funding criteria, and strengthen their reputation as trusted providers of vocational education.

This is where Contextualised Learning Resources (CLR) makes the difference.

Why the Suitability Skills Gap Matters

The suitability skills gap refers to the disconnect between technical qualifications and the core employability skills that employers expect: skills like communication, collaboration, adaptability, initiative, and problem-solving.

According to the National Jobs and Skills Roadmap, closing this gap is critical to addressing current workforce shortages. Employers need graduates who are not only technically competent but also able to adapt, work collaboratively, and take initiative in real-world environments.

Unfortunately, traditional training and assessment often fall short in developing these capabilities. Many graduates leave with a qualification but little experience in applying their knowledge in a practical, workplace context.

How CLR Helps RTOs Bridge the Gap

Contextualised Learning Resources specialises in creating custom-built simulated businesses that bring training to life. These simulations provide students with a safe but realistic environment to apply their learning, bridging the gap between classroom knowledge and workplace performance.

Our approach directly addresses the Core Skills for Work framework, which underpins many state-funded training programs. This framework identifies three key skill areas required for employability, known as Future Skills for Work:

Action Skills – Problem-solving, planning, organising, and completing tasks effectively.
Personal Skills – Self-managing, adapting, working with others, building relationships, and using initiative.
Thinking Skills – Making informed decisions and approaching challenges with creativity and innovation.

Applying Skills to the Eisenhower Matrix

An important way to help students apply these workplace-ready skills is by using tools such as the Eisenhower Urgent/Important Matrix, which helps prioritise tasks based on urgency and importance.

In simulated business environments, RTOs can teach students to categorise their work across the four quadrants of the matrix:

Urgent and Important (Do Now): Use Action Skills such as problem-solving, planning, and organising to meet client deadlines and resolve immediate problems.

Important but Not Urgent (Plan): Apply Thinking Skills like making informed decisions, creativity, and innovation for business growth planning and system development.

Urgent but Not Important (Delegate): Leverage Personal Skills including adaptability, teamwork, and using initiative to delegate routine admin tasks or handle basic enquiries.

Not Urgent and Not Important (Eliminate): Use Personal Skills such as initiative and self-management to identify low-value tasks or reduce distractions.

Why This Matters for RTO Funding

Government-funded programs increasingly measure success not just by enrolments or completions but by how well training improves employability.

RTOs using CLR’s contextualised simulations can:

Demonstrate measurable improvements in graduate proficiency using the Core Skills for Work framework.
Align with the 2025 RTO Standards, particularly around industry engagement and authentic assessment.
Strengthen funding applications by proving they deliver more than just compliance; they deliver job-ready graduates.

Take the First Step – Try Our Free Skills Check

If you are an RTO leader looking to secure government funding or improve your student outcomes, start with a no-cost benchmark of your current training resources.

Our free Skills Check is based on the Core Skills for Work framework used by government programs. It helps you quickly identify gaps in your current training delivery and highlights opportunities to create more engaging, industry-relevant, and fundable programs.

Take the free Skills Check now: https://clresources.com.au/#skillscheck

At Contextualised Learning Resources, we believe that when training is authentic, graduates are more confident, employers are more satisfied, and RTOs are better positioned for success.

Let’s work together to close the suitability skills gap and deliver the job-ready graduates Australia needs.

Need Help Implementing this in Your RTO?

If you would like practical help applying free skills check to your training resources, book a free 15-minute discovery call with our team at Contextualised Learning Resources. We are passionate about helping RTOs deliver quality, contextualised learning.

Part of The Inception Network Australia.