Human skills are hard to define, harder to teach and hardest to measure. Vitruvia has addressed all three.
We have built two complementary products that together form a complete human skills system: a research-based framework that defines, structures and validates human skills competencies, and a digital learning platform that develops them.
You can use one, the other, or both.
The connection between them
The Human Skills Matrix (HSM) and The Quad are designed to work together.
Every programme on The Quad is built on the HSM, which means organisations that licence the framework can see exactly how it performs in practice.
Organisations that use The Quad can be confident that their people are developing skills grounded in a rigorous, internationally researched framework, not an ad hoc curriculum.
You can engage with one or both.
The Human Skills Matrix
For educational publishers, awarding bodies, HR and workforce platforms, multi-academy trusts, government agencies, and course creators.
The Human Skills Matrix (HSM) is a research-based taxonomy of human skills, built to be licensed and embedded into your own products, programmes and platforms.
It covers 14 skill categories and 94 individual competencies, each written as a learning outcome — a precise, teachable, measurable statement of what a person should be able to do. This means the HSM is not a reference document. It is the foundation on which learning materials, assessment tools, job descriptions and skills audits can be built.
Developed over several years by an experienced teaching professional, grounded in international research, and mapped against established frameworks and standards. It was not generated by AI.
What it gives your organisation:
A shared language for skills, so that employers, educators and candidates are describing the same things in the same terms
A taxonomy that works as a tool for capability audits, benchmarking and future skills planning
Competencies supported with rationale and keywords, so that content creators do not need to be human skills experts to use them
A pedagogical framework that underpins any human skills curriculum you build
Demonstrable evidence of skills acquisition that individuals and organisations can use and report against
The HSM is available under licence.
Licensing terms are agreed individually.
The Quad
For employers, sector bodies, schools and organisations that want human skills training delivered.
The Quad is Vitruvia's digital learning platform — where human skills development happens.
Built on the HSM, The Quad delivers interactive micro-modules across the full range of human skills competencies. Programmes can be configured for employers, schools and sector bodies according to your workforce or curriculum priorities.
More than 100,000 people across the UK have developed their human skills through Vitruvia programmes. Clients include the Careers and Enterprise Company, CITB, Sheffield City Council and Wiltshire Council.
What it gives your organisation:
A system that closes the skills gap for your current and future workforce
Evidence of human skills acquisition for individuals, teams and organisations
An approach that acts as a catalyst for social mobility, particularly for early-career learners
Flexible delivery via micro-modules, accessible across age groups and career stages
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Although automation and AI are transforming the workplace, employers continue to look for the essential qualities and abilities that only humans possess, including leadership, self-regulation and creative thinking that are mainly left to the individual to gain by osmosis.
The prefix ‘human’ provides a category for these skills that sit outside of academic and vocational syllabi but which we know are vital - not just for job acquisition and performance, but for life-long personal and career fulfilment.
We have built an academic frame of reference called the Human Skills Matrix which underpins our training programmes.
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The Human Skills Matrix is our research-based framework which provides a common language and reference point from which we build our programmes. The Matrix includes 89 competencies across 14 human skills.
Sources include international research completed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation, World Economic Forum and International Labour Organisation.
The Human Skills Matrix categorises skills into two groups: cognitive and metacognitive, and social and emotional competencies.
We enable and track progress against these competencies in The Quad.
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The Quad is our human skills training ecosystem - the learning platform where human skills are gained.
Provision is in the form of scaffolded learning, structured in micro modules, with interactive and multimedia elements. Our unique blended teaching and coaching pedagogy enables responsive personalisation and differentiation to help each learner achieve their best outcome.
Skills training can be tailored to meet specific national or industrial objectives, for example related to upskilling junior managers, or enabling career starters to transition into the workforce.
Content can also be placed within career and personal development contexts, such as personal branding, recruitment, personal leadership and adding value in the workplace.
Learner progress is tracked against KPIs for commissioners, and learners are able to monitor their own development.
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Our unique approach is applied to your key messages and content to enable learners to take proactive steps towards employment, successfully enter or progress through the workforce, and thrive.
Your key information, skills training and career inspiration can reach and engage a national audience, including those with additional learning needs, providing exceptional ROI.
We can align learning with national careers and skills frameworks and make cross-curricular links to support education and training objectives, which ensures high levels of engagement and reach, whether learners are accessing through their education, work or training setting.
Engaging activities enable learners to develop the human skills you require, such as verbal communication, adaptability and learning strategies.
Your content can be tailored to meet the needs of specific categories of learners, such as career starters, people with additional learning needs, and women.
Learners can evidence progress and skills achievement, aiding job acquisition and career progression. Using engagement data captured, you, as a Government or sector body or employer, can identify engaged or promising participants and offer them more specific outreach programmes and opportunities.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Human skills, sometimes called soft skills, are the qualities and capabilities that make people effective collaborators, communicators and thinkers: emotional intelligence, adaptability, critical thinking, resilience, teamwork and more. In an increasingly automated world, these are the skills that AI cannot replicate, and employers consistently cite them as the most important attributes they look for in candidates at every level.
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We work with Government agencies, local authorities, schools, colleges, FE providers, sector bodies and commercial employers across the UK and internationally. Our programmes are designed for school leavers, graduates, women returning to work, individuals with SEND, apprentices and existing employees at all career stages.
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Our programmes are delivered digitally via our Learning Management System, fondly called The Quad. Programmes are: interactive micro-modules, short, focused units that are accessible and suitable for all ages and learning levels. We also design bespoke resources, workshops and coaching programmes tailored to your specific context and audience.
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Yes.
Bespoke programme design is central to what we do. We work collaboratively with clients to create training that reflects their sector, their learners and their strategic goals, from career inspiration content for young people to leadership development for professionals.
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Our programmes are evaluated through learner feedback, pre- and post-assessment data and commissioner reporting. You can read our full case studies on the Case Studies page.
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Get in touch via our Contact page with a brief description of your organisation, your audience and your goals. We'll arrange a conversation to explore how we can help.
Our programmes meet these
Vitruvia works to expand opportunity and enable inclusion, tailoring solutions to engage:
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School Leavers
School leavers looking to transition into further training benefit from human skills training to support, for example, decision making, analytical and critical thinking, and strategies for learning.
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Graduates
Graduates looking for professional positions are enabled by human skills training in, for example, career management, developing a growth mindset, and communication.
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Women
Women who are returning to or entering the workplace are supported by human skills training in, for example, confidence, learning capabilities and strategies, and leadership.
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SEND
Individuals with additional learning needs who have the potential to contribute are enabled by human skills training that develops, for example, intrapersonal skill, goal setting and foundational literacies.
Vitruvia works with our clients to meet their strategic needs for sustainability and growth:
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Career Inspiration Content
To increase sector visibility and highlight entry pathways to school-age talent with career inspiration content that teaches foundational human skills.
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Upskilling
To upskill new and existing employees to maximise productivity, create an agile workforce and grow new leaders.
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Promotion
To promote their sector to graduates, with key information and bespoke human skills training for employability that reduces recruitment costs and improves retention.