Graduates’ Creativity Impact on Employability Skills: Moderated by Entrepreneurial Attitudes and Mediated by Work Ability

Abstract

The paper seeks to discuss the impact of graduates’ creativity/innovation, work ability, and entrepreneurial attitudes of business students on the employability skills that business education delivers. It attempts to investigate the way these variables interact to condition the employability outcomes of the business graduates while focusing on work ability as the mediator and entrepreneurial attitudes as a moderator.The study conducted a cross-sectional survey of 207 graduate-level business students across different programs such as finance, marketing, and entrepreneurship. Data were obtained using self-administered questionnaires, and analyses were conducted using ADANCO (Analytic-Dynamic Nonlinear Component Analysis) to consider direct, indirect, and interactive relationships between the central constructs of the model.The study established that creativity/innovation and work ability have significant influences on the employability skills of graduates. Work ability, in addition, mediates the creativity/innovation and employability skills relationship while entrepreneurial attitudes moderately influence this relationship. The implications of the results are that there is a significant interplay of creativity, practical skills, and entrepreneurial mindset for the business graduate’s employability outcomes. By including creativity, work capacity, and entrepreneurial attitudes as important elements that contribute to graduate employability, it adds to the body of literature already produced in connection to the comprehensive model of employability. Additionally, it is giving educators, companies, and legislators practical advice on how to enhance graduate programs and foster a comprehensive strategy for preparing students for the ever-changing workforce.