Organisations that want to stay ahead of the competition must encourage continuous learning. The need for continuous learning comes on the heels of new advancements in technology and innovation, which have significantly altered the skills required for organisational performance.
According to a survey carried out by the OECD of the World Economic Forum, approximately 35% of the skills demanded for jobs across industries will change by 2020.
The implication of this prediction is that employers are battling with employees who have skillsets that are fast becoming irrelevant to their business goals. This presents a huge skill gap in the workforce with employers unable to find and hire talents who possess the required skills.
Results from PWCs 2019 Global CEO Survey revealed that four out of five CEOs are worried that their employees lack essential skills and have identified the skills gap as a threat to growth.
What can employers do to bridge the skills gap and improve organisational performance in the coming year?
The solution is Reskilling!
Reskilling involves training employees to gain new skills that enable them to successfully fill crucial roles within the organisation. These roles are often aligned with business goals and objectives.
Employers who wish to improve organisational performance should strongly consider making reskilling a crucial part of their learning and development strategy.
What to Consider When Reskilling for Improved Organisational Performance
However, while reskilling can be an effective way for employers to bridge skill gaps and increase business performance, employees need to ‘buy into’ their own reskilling rather than having it forced upon them.
More often than not, employers approach reskilling from an enforcement angle without giving thought or consideration to the personal development plans of their employees.
To gain employee buy-in, management needs to inform employees of the various benefits of gaining new skills and how it contributes to their professional growth and development.
Benefits of Reskilling for Improved Organisational Performance
One major benefit of reskilling is that it equips your employees with skills that enable them to handle coming changes in industry trends.
Employers who can predict future trends and identify skills that will be required in the next five years can prepare a learning plan to meet with future skills requirements. For improved performance in the near future, reskilling has to begin as soon as possible.
According to Pew Research Centre, a large percentage of today’s workforce comprises millennials. And millennials prioritise opportunities for professional development as much as other workplace incentives.
Incorporating reskilling as part of learning and development efforts will help employers attract and retain top performers in the organisation.
How to Get Started With Reskilling
The very first place to start is for employers to carry out a survey to determine the skills that will be needed in the coming years and then comparing that to the current skillsets of the workforce. This is important because you need to understand the capabilities you will need for future business success.
The next step will be to assess the skills of the current workforce to identify the skill gaps and then set up a learning and development program to close those gaps.
Another thing to note is that reskilling should not be implemented with a one-size-fits-all approach. For it to be effective, it needs to be an individualised experience. It should be dynamic and be designed around each worker and their evolving roles.
These steps are just to jumpstart the reskilling process as there are other actions that need to be completed in order to implement a successful reskilling program.
You need to consult business experts who can look at trends and evolving markets, carry out an evaluation of your workforce, identify skills that are required for future business success and set up a learning plan for your team.
Contact us at Workforce Group to help your organisation develop and implement an effective reskilling program that will ensure your continued business success.
