The pandemic transformed reality for everyone, including many companies which had to adapt and will continue to reinvent themselves to keep up with the changes in the market. However, companies that have not yet adapted to our new world are lagging behind and may be missing out on great opportunities.
Although we don’t know exactly what the future of some industries will be, this period of transformation made it clear that many positions no longer have the same relevance as before. However, while some occupations disappeared, others emerged.
This can be explained by the rapid technological advancements of the last few years, which were key to containing the economic damage that emerged early in the pandemic. Considering these changes, it is inevitable that some companies will have to offer new training to professionals to keep up with the labor market.
To help you foster the development your employees need and make your company stand out in the market, we will let you know everything you need to know about upskilling and reskilling, two training techniques that can be implemented by your HR team– keep reading!
What is the difference between upskilling and reskilling?
Upskilling and reskilling are very similar terms. Both refer to the training that teams need to stay up-to-date with changes in the labor market. However, these two words still have different meanings.
To avoid confusing the two and to choose the most appropriate strategy for your company, remember that what differentiates them is the purpose of the training. While upskilling is used for employees to further specialize within their position, reskilling prepares them to take on new jobs in the company, thus creating more versatile professionals.
In order to resolve any doubts regarding these two terms, we will explain each of them in more depth below.
What is upskilling?
Upskilling is a learning technique that develops or reinforces competencies that the employee already possesses in their current position. In other words, it helps them to improve skills and knowledge specific to their area of expertise. By encouraging this type of continuous training within your company, your employees will be able to perform their tasks more effectively and prepare themselves for any new challenges that their job position may bring.
What is reskilling?
Reskilling promotes the development of new competencies by the employee. In this way, they will learn how to complete the necessary tasks in order to assume a new position in the company. For example, if a person works in marketing operations and wants to switch to a management position, they cannot be promoted without first developing the required skills for the new position.
Why is it so important to train my employees?
It is very common for the labor market to go through changes over the years. However, employees are not often prepared to work in these new conditions. Despite this, the solution is not to fire them, but to provide corporate training.
For example, professionals will regularly need to improve certain skills in order to be able to complete their work in the most satisfactory way. Their professional development will help customers feel more satisfied with the provided service, but this is not the only positive impact of corporate training.
Additionally, an employee’s experience at the company is extremely important for business success. Satisfied employees feel more motivated and show greater dedication to their work. As a result, they are less likely to seek employment opportunities in other organizations.
Have you ever wondered why so many people dream of working at Google, Netflix, Nubank and other companies in the technology sector? The answer lies in the value proposition of these companies, as they always prioritize their team’s experience and do not focus solely on business goals.
This does not mean that these companies do not have objectives, but that their culture is much more autonomous. For this reason, nowadays, it is not enough to just have good Human Capital Management (HCM), but it’s also necessary to establish Human Experience Management (HXM) to improve the well-being of your employees.
The generation that is currently entering the job market prefers work environments that value their teams and foster their happiness, rather than stressful work environments where employees continually perform their duties under pressure. For this reason, holding corporate training sessions will increase employee satisfaction and humanize your company to your employees.
Three benefits of upskilling and reskilling for businesses
Besides helping your company through the changes from the pandemic, upskilling and reskilling techniques are excellent methods to implement in the medium to long term. After all, the idea of both techniques is to keep your team up-to-date.
Since industries and technology will continue to evolve for the foreseeable future, it will always be important to develop the skills of your employees. This will be true regardless of your company’s performance or the strength of the economy.
If you are still unsure about investing in upskilling and reskilling at your company, don’t worry. Here are three benefits that these techniques can bring to your company in the long term:
1. Bridging the digital divide among employees
One of the main reasons to start implementing these professional development methods in your company is to increase your team’s digital literacy. This is especially important for older employees, who are not as familiar with newer technology. If these professionals do not start learning about this tech as soon as possible, it will be much more difficult for them to use newer tools as technology develops.
2. Increased talent retention
Talent retention is another advantage of upskilling and reskilling techniques. Employees do not stay with a company only for the competitive salary, but also for all the additional benefits beyond the meal bonus, transportation allowance and health plan.
Offering partnerships with gyms, fitness studios, recreational clubs, and psychologists, as well as having a pet-friendly office or promoting training courses for professional development are all good initiatives to avoid a high turnover rate at your company.
3. Increased talent attraction
Thinking about talent attraction is also fundamental for your company to stand out in the labor market. After all, there will always be a turnover of employees, which is why it is essential to always bring new people to the team.
In order to hire the most qualified people for your open positions, it is important to take into account your company’s image in the industry. One way to improve your organization’s reputation is to promote a positive image among the people who are already part of the staff.
To achieve this, it is necessary to invest in employer branding techniques. Fostering employee training is a great way to improve the company’s reputation. With this goal in mind, you can use upskilling and reskilling.
Offering language courses will help you in that task and you can count on Slang for that! With our platform, you will be able to train your team with the professional English used in your industry. We have more than 200 industry-focused online courses for you and your team to specialize in. All of them are based on machine learning and are customized to the previous knowledge of each employee.
How can you implement an upskilling and reskilling plan in your company?
Before providing this type of training, it is important to draw up a career plan for all positions. Do this for all areas and positions in the company, from operations to management positions.
Take into account the reality of each employee and always pay attention to their professional aspirations, skills, and aptitudes. Also, remember to keep in mind the needs of your company. In this way, you will be able to align the team’s expectations with the company’s reality and avoid dissatisfaction in the future.
Did you enjoy this content? Learn more about the importance of English language learning to avoid professional illiteracy!
