Got Skills?

Communication skills are important. There just isn't any way around it. If you're in a customer facing job you need strong verbal communication skills. If you're in a job where you're behind a desk and deal with any type of correspondence then you need strong written communication skills. Of course, perhaps I'm just throwing the word "strong" out there because I consider it a given that you're looking to succeed.

A recent survey of CFOs found that 75% said that verbal, written and interpersonal skills are more valuable now for accounting and finance jobs than just 5 years ago. The real kick in the pants, however, was that only 37% of those same CFOs said that their organizations provided any type of training in those areas!

YEOWCH! Am I the only one that can see the disconnect here? I hope not!
Now I'm of the belief that the majority of the time we'll get out of what we put in to our employees in terms of development. I believe that providing self development courses that help to expand on an employee skill set is an investment in a company's talent pool and helps to create a sense of loyalty with that employee.

Do you have self development courses or resources available at your organization? What are your thoughts on retention and development as it retains to an in-house talent pool? You're not waiting on such a project to develop where you are in order to continue your professional growth, are you?
More on that survey:

"Employees with an eye toward advancement shouldn't wait for their companies to provide soft-skills training" Messmer said. "Identifying a mentor, taking courses in business writing and public speaking, and volunteering for team leadership roles are excellent ways to become a more effective communicator."