Upskilling Your Employees: A Step-By-Step Guide for Success

Organizations need to hire top talent to fill critical job roles. However, this has become increasingly difficult. One reason is we are experiencing a global talent shortage, but the main reason is we have a huge skills “misalignment” because applicants do not have the skills employers need.

Around 10 years ago, many organizations upgraded technology and implemented digital transformation solutions to facilitate operations and increase productivity. So, they changed the requirements for many jobs, eliminated obsolete positions, and added positions to support and manage their new infrastructure.

Many applicants’ skills did not keep up with these changes, resulting in a shortage of candidates with in-demand skills. Numerous companies have job vacancies they cannot fill because they cannot find qualified talent. The problem has become so severe that 71% of CEOs say a lack of talent will be their biggest business challenge this decade.

Since it is so difficult to recruit qualified employees, many business leaders have concluded that developing current staff is the solution. If you are one, you may be wondering if upskilling your employees is a viable solution.

What is Upskilling?

Upskilling means helping employees improve their skills by providing training and development opportunities. For instance, a web designer could complete WordPress and Java programming courses and workshops to qualify for web developer jobs. A web content manager or digital marketing manager who wants to be more involved in web analytics and reporting could complete Google.

Organizations that implement upskilling initiatives reduce HR expenses since they avoid the cost of hiring new employees. They also reduce voluntary turnover, find it easier to attract top talent, and can fill skill and knowledge gaps quickly.

How to Upskill Employees

Upskilling helps you future-proof your workforce so you always have the talent you need to take advantage of new market opportunities. These are some guidelines on how to upskill employees successfully.

• Identify Skill and Knowledge Gaps: Begin by analyzing current and future skills and knowledge gaps. Examine skill needs that are critical to your business goals. What hard and soft skills are you lacking that will hinder your ability to get where you want to go? Ask employees what they think their strengths and weaknesses are and where they need help.

• Set Upskilling Goals: Define your business priorities and work with employees to develop personalized upskilling goals, schedules, and timeframes. Be specific about what competencies they need to master and ensure they understand how the skills are relevant to their role. Align goals with measurable milestones and metrics so you and the employee can gauge progress.

• Define Upskilling Pathways: Work with employees to create customized upskilling pathways. Examples of options to include are online learning, mentorships, workshops, conferences, stretch assignments, and job rotations. People learn differently. So, experiment with different learning styles and approaches to see what works best for each employee.

• Provide Resources and Support: Provide employees with the necessary resources to execute upskilling plans. Allow them to set aside time for learning and development, and offer access to courses, workshops, and tools. Assign each employee a mentor who provides 1:1 coaching and advice.

• Measure Results and Impact: You do not know if a program works unless you measure its impact. So, track progress using assessments, observation, and third-party feedback. Document skills and knowledge employees have acquired, note performance improvements, and look for improvements in productivity, work quality, engagement, and innovation to tie outcomes to business impact.

• Realign as Necessary: Provide opportunities where employees can apply new skills. Meet with employees regularly to re-evaluate skills gaps and realign upskilling as needed. A big part of upskilling is assessing what knowledge has become obsolete and must be updated. Therefore, it is necessary to refresh goals to meet emerging needs.

How Upskilling Improves Productivity

Upskilling improves productivity by enabling employees to work more efficiently. A Capgemini study showed that upskilled employees can complete routine tasks faster so they have more time to focus on tasks critical to company growth.

Google, Wal-Mart, Verizon, McDonald’s, and Marriott International Organizations are a few examples of companies that have invested billions in upskilling. Employees have the opportunity to improve existing skills, learn new skills, and even pursue a college degree. This enables them to take on additional job responsibilities, transition to new jobs, and move into management.

Get Started With Upskilling Your Employees

Investing in your employees’ growth is an investment in your organization’s future because your employees are your most valuable asset. Upskilling shows them you value their contribution and want to help them take charge of their career development. You will also improve engagement, retention, and performance through strategic upskilling.

The eSkill Talent Assessment Platform^TM enables you to proactively determine your staff’s skills, identify abilities they need to develop, and plan for the future.

Do you want to learn how to upskill employees so you can create employee development programs that maximize staff potential? Contact eSkill to request a demo.