Upskilling employees involves providing them with the tools, training, and opportunities needed to expand their skills and adapt to new challenges. It requires a structured approach that aligns with both individual career goals and the organisation’s objectives. By upskilling employees, you not only enhance their productivity, but also address one of the pressing issues that UK companies are facing: skills and workforce shortage, as highlighted in our Annual Trends Report. Download the full report here!
At OneAdvanced, we help you streamline your end-to end workflows. Through our portfolios of sector-specific software, underpinned by resilient cloud platform providing common services for data & analytics, security, and AI, we automate repetitive, mundane tasks, and enable your employees to focus on high-value activities like training and upskilling. Additionally, we have come up with 12 effective strategies to upskill your team and future-proof your workforce.
1. Conduct a skills gap analysis
A skills gap analysis is a critical process for identifying the current skills of employees and discovering gaps that need to be addressed to achieve organisational goals. Start by assessing your workforce’s existing skills through survey, performance evaluations, or individual assessments. Next, review the requirements of current roles and create an inventory of the skills your company actively needs. Compare these two inventories to identify gaps. This comparison reveals the areas where skills are lacking and where development is needed.
Note that skills gap analysis is not a one-time process – it’s an ongoing exercise. Regularly revisiting and updating this analysis helps your company stay agile, leading to measurable and impactful impact. At OneAdvanced, we support you through our cloud-based HR solutions. Implementing these solutions enable you to track and analyse employees’ progress, identify skill gaps in real-time, and tailor training programs accordingly.
2. Establish customised upskilling objectives
A one-size-fits-all approach to upskilling falls short in today’s diverse workplace. The level of expertise in certain skills may vary among employees. Additionally, employees in some departments are more susceptible to technology-related disruptions than those in others. To address these differences, you should set customised upskilling goals aligned with SMART framework: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. For example: all employees in department X will achieve proficiency in one critical skill within six months.
OneAdvanced’s comprehensive suite of People and Workforce Management Solutions allow your employees and managers to set personal and professional objectives that align to the organisation’s goals. By enabling them to tailor their upskilling journey, we not only increase the chances of success but also foster a sense of ownership and motivation among them.
3. Develop a culture of continuous learning
We believe in the culture of continuous learning. Curiosity is one of our core values. Cultivating a curious culture empower us to question assumptions, explore new ideas, and continuously learn. This mindset encourages our employees to continuously learn and grow and enable us to deliver exceptional value to our customers.
We encourage our partners and clients to adopt this approach as well. By providing employees access to learning resources, creating opportunities for feedback, and embracing a growth mindset, you enable them to visualise their career path and develop skills needed to achieve their goals. This way, you can unlock innovation and drive growth across your organisation.
4. Map skills with career growth opportunities
Mapping employees’ skills to career opportunities requires a structured approach that aligns employee growth with organisational goals. You can start by creating a clear career roadmap that outlines how employees can progress within the organisation. This should include the necessary skills, training programs, and milestones they need to achieve.
Personalisation is key to making this process impactful. Every employee has unique aspirations, strengths, and areas for development. Therefore, you should create tailored pathways that balance individual ambitions with organisational needs. This will not only increase employee engagement and motivation but also ensure that your organisation has the necessary talent to achieve its goals.
5. Leverage technology to train employees
As with many aspects of work, leveraging new systems and technology is one of the most effective ways for organisations to get the most out of any employee training initiatives they wish to introduce. HR systems in particular offer a framework wherein businesses can effectively monitor and maintain the learning and development profiles of their employees, accurately charting each person’s journey and keeping on top of any certification or qualifications.
At OneAdvanced, we believe in the potential of technology to help empower your people and allow your business to reach the heights that it deserves. Our cloud HR software solution, offers a comprehensive framework to help free your people teams and support your business in crafting an effective training and development program.
6. Launch learning and development platforms
Today’s learners have different expectations from training programs. They want convenient, on-demand access to learning materials that can fit their busy schedules. Conventional classroom style might not be much effective to engage them and retain knowledge. Therefore, investing in a L&D platform is wisdom. With features such as mobile accessibility, microlearning modules, gamification elements, and social leaning capabilities, L&D platforms empower employees to learn and grow. Employees can pick their courses and choose which content will best serve their needs at a time that suits them.
7. Encourage peer-to-peer learning
Peer-to-peer learning is an effective technique to enhance employee skills and knowledge while also fostering teamwork and collaboration. It gives employees the opportunity to learn from their colleagues’ experiences and expertise, creating a sense of community within the workplace. This approach is quite popular in organisations with a diverse workforce, as it allows for cross-functional knowledge sharing and promotes inclusivity.
To encourage peer-to-peer learning, you can organise workshops or informal sessions where employees can share best practices, brainstorm ideas, or give presentations on relevant topics. This not only promotes a learning culture but also builds stronger relationships among employees.
8. Layout employee development plans
An employee development plan is a strategic framework designed to support both personal and professional growth. It focuses on identifying an individual’s career goals, addressing their developmental needs, and outlining actionable steps to enhance their skills and capabilities.
These plans typically include activities such as training programs, mentoring, job rotations, stretch assignments, and regular feedback. By fostering continuous learning and growth, these not only improve job performance but also align employee development with the organisation’s objectives. Ultimately, a well-crafted development plan strengthens the partnership between the employee and the organisation, paving the way for career advancement and mutual success.
9. Incorporate on-the-job training
On-the-job training offers an immersive learning experience for employees by allowing them to apply newly acquired skills and knowledge in a real-world setting. This can include shadowing experienced employees, working on projects or assignments, or taking on temporary roles within the organisation.
On-the-job training not only enhances employees’ technical skills but also improves soft skills such as communication, time management, and adaptability. By providing these opportunities, you enable your employees to learn by doing and gain valuable hands-on experience that they can then apply in their regular job role.
10. Set aside learning time and schedules
One of the main reasons employees may not engage in upskilling opportunities is a lack of time. To combat this, it’s important to set aside dedicated learning time during work hours and incorporate training schedules into employees’ calendars. This not only shows a commitment to employee development but also allows for better time management and prioritisation.
Additionally, consider implementing flexible options such as online or self-paced courses that can be completed outside of work hours if needed. This ensures that all employees have access to learning opportunities regardless of their schedule constraints.
11. Create post-training plans
It’s important to have a plan in place for after employees complete their training and upskilling programs. This could include implementing new processes or procedures learned during the training, assigning new tasks or projects that allow employees to utilise their newly acquired skills, or providing ongoing support and resources for continued learning and development.
By creating post-training plans, you ensure that the time and resources invested in upskilling are not wasted and that employees have the opportunity to apply their new skills in a meaningful way within the organisation. This also reinforces the importance of continuous learning and development within your company culture.
12. Measure and track progress
As with any business initiative, it’s crucial to measure the success of upskilling programs and track progress over time. This not only allows you to determine the return on investment but also helps identify areas for improvement and adjust training strategies accordingly.
Some key metrics to track include employee engagement, skills acquisition, career progression, and overall business performance. Regular evaluations and feedback from employees can also provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of your upskilling initiatives. By consistently measuring and tracking progress, you can ensure that your upskilling efforts align with business objectives and continue to drive success within your organisation.
Benefits of upskilling employees
Upskilling is pivotal for any organisation aiming to stay competitive, adaptable, and innovative in today’s fast-paced business environment. Here are some reasons why upskilling is important:
Increase employee retention
According to our latest Annual Trends Report, retaining talent is the top challenge for UK organisations, negatively impacting their ability to prosper. To overcome this hurdle, upskilling employees is one effective approach that companies can adopt. By upskilling employees, you demonstrate a commitment to their growth and development, which leads to increased job satisfaction and engagement. This sense of investment and support can translate into employee loyalty, reducing turnover rates.
Enhances productivity and efficiency
Boosting efficiency and increasing productivity is the number one priority for organisations in the next 12 months, as highlighted by 44% of companies in our latest report. Upskilling employees can directly address this priority. By developing new skills, your workforce becomes more agile and adaptable. They can perform tasks with increased efficiency. Furthermore, upskilling employees also leads to a faster adaptation of modern technologies and processes. This results in the smooth implementation of changes across departments and an increase in overall productivity.
Drive innovation
By investing in upskilling, your organisation can unlock the full potential of its employees. Upskilling encourages them to think outside the box, explore new ideas and approaches, and continuously learn and improve. This mindset fosters a culture of innovation that can lead to breakthroughs and advancements within your industry. Employees who feel empowered and equipped with new skills are more likely to bring new perspectives and fresh ideas to the table, driving progress and success for your organisation.
Address skill gaps
Another significant benefit of upskilling employees is the ability to address skill gaps within your company. As technologies continue to evolve, there is a constant need for new skills and expertise. By identifying these skill gaps and providing employees training and development opportunities, you can ensure that your workforce remains equipped with necessary skills to meet current and future business needs.
Enhances customer satisfaction
Well-trained employees are efficient in delivering quality services to customers. By developing new skills and expertise, whether it’s improved communication skills or technical expertise, your employees can better understand customers’ needs and challenges and provide exceptional services. This leads to enhanced customer satisfaction and loyalty, ultimately driving business growth and success.
Examples of upskilling
To illustrate the impact of upskilling, here are some examples of companies that have successfully implemented upskilling initiatives:
Google is a global leader in employee upskilling and development. The company encourages employees to spend 20% of their work time on side projects outside their job responsibilities. This initiative has led to products such as Gmail and Google News, demonstrating how investing in employees’ interests and skills can lead to innovative ideas and business success.
Microsoft
In 2015, Microsoft launched an initiative called “LEAP”, which stands for “Learning, Experience, and Professionalism”. This program offers employees access to a variety of resources and training opportunities to enhance their skills in areas such as data science, AI, cloud computing, and more. By investing in upskilling its workforce, Microsoft has become a leader in innovation within the technology industry.
AT&T
In response to the rapid changes within the telecommunications industry, AT&T launched a program called “Future Ready”. This program offers employees opportunities for continuous learning and development through online courses, certifications, and other educational resources. As a result, AT&T has seen improved employee retention, increased job satisfaction and engagement, and overall business growth.
OneAdvanced
OneAdvanced has recently introduced a tool called ‘SkillsHub’. Through this tool, we provide employees access to a wide range of courses, videos and resources on emerging technologies, leadership skills, professional development and much more. We also allow them to create their own learning paths based on their interests and career goals, making it a truly personalised upskilling experience.
In conclusion, upskilling employees isn’t just a strategic initiative – it’s a necessity for organisations striving to thrive in today’s competitive landscape. By adopting tailored strategies and leveraging the right tools, you can empower your employees to grow alongside your business. The above 12 strategies provided in this guide offer a roadmap to enhance skills, improve retention, and drive innovation within your organisation.
Additionally, download our Annual Trends Report 2024/25 now to explore more insights and stay ahead of the curve!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is employee upskilling?
Employee upskilling is the process where employees learn new skills or improve their existing ones to meet evolving job requirements. It helps organisations stay competitive by addressing skill gaps and ensuring employees are prepared for future challenges. Upskilling benefits both employers and employees by boosting productivity, engagement, and career growth opportunities.
When to start thinking about upskilling employees?
You should start thinking about upskilling employees as soon as you identify skill gaps or notice evolving industry demands. Proactive upskilling ensures your workforce remains competitive, adaptable, and aligned with future business goals. Additionally, starting early helps drive employee engagement and retention, fostering a culture of continuous learning and growth within your organisation.
