Why Is It Important to Be a T-shaped Person?

Edited by: Kevin Schoen:

There’s a growing body of research showing that young professionals need to possess deep disciplinary knowledge along with a keen ability to communicate across social, cultural and economic boundaries.

what-is-t — At ACD we encourage folks not to be a one trick pony with their skills set. To expand their knowledge and well-being a person needs to relate to all sorts of people from different departments age groups and more.

You can’t be a one trick pony with your skills set and you need to relate to all sorts of people.

At a T-Summit at MSU this week they shared experiences and best practices to create a common language for both higher education and the corporate sector to use synonymously surrounding T-shaped development. Over the past decade, research has emphasized the need for today’s young professionals to possess deep disciplinary knowledge along with a keen ability to communicate across social, cultural and economic boundaries.

At ACD some folks wear suits some wear T-shirts. What’s important is people can be themselves. Our customers come from all walks of life so our staff should too.

In comparison with the “T” shaped individual, the “I” shaped individual is focused largely on their particular knowledge and skill-set, views the workplace as a competitive environment, and works within disciplinary silos. Currently many college and university
graduates have been trained to be productive in one field, but employers are placing
increasing importance on skills that reach beyond a single discipline or focus. Upon graduation, students should be able to handle information from multiple sources, advance

Why is it important to be a T-shaped person?professional relationships across different organizations, contribute innovatively to organizational practices, and communicate with understanding across social, cultural, economic and scientific disciplines. Tomorrow’s workers will build their careers in a globally interconnected and constantly changing world with smarter technologies in an effort to effect positive global change.

Learn more at: http://tsummit2014.org/t

source: Michigan State University Office of the Provost Undergraduate Education)