Change is the only constant in this world. In just a snap of a finger, anything may happen, and unavoidable. The same with the unexpected abruption of the virus that hits us hard – Covid-19, which caused disruptions to many businesses’ operations and employees. A very challenging time for leaders to think of new ways to manage people and a difficult time for employees to survive working from home.
On top of that, the high demand for digitalization is increasingly evolving—many needs to deal with and learn new technologies to deliver efficiently.
In the post-pandemic era, companies must invest heavily in reskilling and upskilling their workforce and constantly evaluate their progress and needs as their industry shifts to succeed. Even before the pandemic, the need to upskill workers displaced by technology was considered the challenge of our times. How much more in these current times of uncertainties and growing digital transformation?
So, what is upskilling and reskilling, and how does it help every organization provide new ways to make their employees ready and flexible?
What is Upskilling?
Upskilling is the process that helps individuals become better at the job they are currently doing. Employers may provide training to their workforce to acquire new skills, which enables them to grow and be more efficient in their current position and bring added value to business growth. Upskilling makes employees adaptable that can make them bend and shift any changes in your organization.
What is Reskilling?
Reskilling is the process of developing or learning new skills to find a different career path. Reskilling is attractive to employees who want to work in a new role. For instance, the employer may wish to retrain a worker if their skill sets would be better suited to another function. Instead of leaving the current position and looking for new opportunities outside the organization, the employer can keep its worker and reduce the risk of unemployment.
Why Upskilling and Reskilling Matters?
Most people upskill and reskill to stand out. Yet, after the past years of experiencing an unexpected crisis like Covid-19 and the continuous workplace digitalization, it’s now more critical than ever. Here’s why:
- The world of business is constantly changing. Business strategies and sets of people and their skills come and go. The old will be gone, and there’s always new that has come. To adapt to constant changes in the business world, upskilling and reskilling will be your weapon in being left out and be in a better position to react to any uncertainties.
- Digital transformation. Nowadays, some lines of work may replace by evolving technologies. As a result, acquiring new knowledge and leveraging skills in this area is an edge.
- Adaptability. As mentioned above, the business world keeps on changing. Thus, organization and its people must seek new learnings to keep up with the needs of a new line of work.
What should an organization consider about Upskilling and Reskilling?
There are many factors that organizations should focus on and manage appropriately to Upskill and Reskill.
1. Growing digital technologies
Many organizations, especially in the manufacturing industry, have adopted robots and Artificial Intelligence to work with humans. The BBC reports that “Up to 20 million manufacturing jobs worldwide could be replaced by robots by 2030”. In this case, the demand in the human labor market tends to decrease.
The Pandemic era has also accelerated the rise of the digital economy, which has led to some significant development to do work digitally.
Therefore, employers need to retrain their workers to use new apps, systems, and software to adapt quickly to digital workplace transformation.
2. Manpower Skills Shortage
One of the downsides of growing technologies is replacing low-skilled manual jobs. At the same time, digitalization also creates a demand for new skills. Human labor is still required to operate in both scenarios.
To solve these problems in the future, organizations should provide training to their workforce, whether to Upskill or Reskill, and bring advancement to the new line of work and increase efficiency and productivity.
How to apply Upskill and Reskill for Business Development?
As the speed of digital transformation continues relentlessly, an effective career pathing strategy is beneficial for both employees and HR. Talent management is imperative for your organization.
Upskilling and Reskilling can elevate your process of human development. It may sound not very easy, but possible. It may not be adequate to apply to all employees, but there’s no one-size-fits-all to any organization. Hence, paying attention to these relevant factors may consider:
1. Invest in Human Development
Developing your employee skills also means growing your business. Many HR platforms could help workforce development, such as skills-based training, leadership, and management training. The bottom line is to choose the suitable programs or training that best-fit to the needs of your workforce and organization.
How to be able to know what is suitable? The HRIS system (Human Resource Information System) helps recognize and track employees’ performance. With its Performance Management feature, HR can plan training sessions accordingly.
2. Organize training
Upskill and Reskill courses mainly depend on the company’s direction and employees’ needs. It usually starts by focusing on specialized skills such as Data Analysis or Digital Literacy.
In addition, the organization can create and take advantage of virtual learning channels that are convenient for this pandemic and digitalization era. It includes creating a website, Facebook Group, using Google Meet, Zoom, or Microsoft Teams.
3. Employee Awareness
Organizational initiatives will be useless without employee awareness. Employees must know about their skill sets and how to improve them. First and foremost, they must be encouraged and motivated to train. You cannot achieve change without knowing what to be changed first. The organization should educate its people on what is going on with their current business status. Well-informed and motivated employees can conquer business evolution and revolution.
The world may constantly change, but nothing beats good preparation. Upskilling and Reskilling are beneficial to adapt to sudden business transformation or for future growth. To succeed in whatever it may look like for your industry—it will require to help your workforce adapt accordingly. Helping your people develop their skills and supporting them with their career goals is crucial. It will always be a win-win situation when this process of Upskilling and Reskilling is layout carefully and strategically. While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, leaders who take steps now in developing and understanding the skill sets needed today and tomorrow will be well-positioned for the future.
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