With the HR industry revitalizing and revamping its strategies to best position businesses in the competitive markets, the hunt for top talent is scarce. Marketing efforts have evolved to unique and quality benefits that attract younger, mobile candidates, as well as innovative, robust workplace settings and culture to retain top employees. With the struggle of attracting and maintaining a strong workforce, companies may see a shift to utilizing upskilling methods rather than engaging in the daunting HR processes for terminating, hiring, and recovering from employee turnover.
Upskilling is employer-provided training and education to learn new skills and enhance already established skillsets. This investment in employees showcases the value you have for their expertise, their trust, and enthusiasm to further their career within your corporation, and provides a win-win situation.
66% of global executives prioritize upskilling their employees.1 Upskilling provides benefits for both employees and employers.
For employees, upskilling provides broad growth opportunities and marketability. Learning new skills and honing established skillsets equip employees with more opportunities to advance their careers. With AI and automation revolutionizing the workforce, upskilling presents employees with a competitive edge to demonstrate adaptability and collaborative skills.
For employers, upskilling boosts employee retention and competitive strategy among rivaling companies and industries. Upskilling can reduce job vacancies and onboarding expenses, while also providing professional development opportunities for current employees. Progressing employee skills to adapt to changes in the market allows your business to prosper and sustain an ambitious position in the marketplace.
How to Implement an Upskilling Strategy
Evaluate business demands. The first and best place to begin strategizing for upskilling begins with evaluating the skill gaps and brainstorming solutions. From there, you can determine an appropriate approach to implementing such solutions.
Strategize long-term needs and resources. Next, you should look to the market that you service and predict shifts in skillsets and systems that will influence the employee demand and marketability. This will allow you to strategize for future needs and resources that will [sustain] in the long term.
Analyze employee needs. Employees carry individual skillsets that benefit your business. Take a moment to analyze what each employee brings to the table, and then identify potential areas of expanding such skillsets to further assist your business challenges.
Develop adequate upskilling programs. Cultivating programs tailored to both employee interests and business needs will provide more successful upskilling. Ensure programs are up to date with market and business changes, as well as using sufficient technology to advance such programs. Take advantage of technology. Investing in technology, such as performance management tools, can assist in the proper identification of areas for improvement, as well as methods for developing skills to improve.
Looking for ways to revamp your company’s approach to recruiting and employee retention? Harbor America provides an inclusive suite of HR management solutions, including onboarding, compliance, unemployment, and much more. Contact us today to learn more about ways to promote the use of upskilling and other resources available to advance your business needs.
1HR Insights: Benefits of Upskilling
