In a dynamic world and workplace, companies constantly grapple with the need for upskilling and reskilling of employees. As new families of jobs and requirements evolve and establish themselves, many employee skills either become commoditized or outdated. Though it is happening in the technology and digital world at a rapid pace, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Cloud being two ready examples of technologies gradually gathering pace, no industry is immune to development and change.
Often, there could be a mismatch between the requirements of industry and the output of the academic world, requiring industry to step in and fill the gaps.
The search for the right skills combines injecting fresh talent and upskilling and reskilling of employees. Of course, it is assumed that the same is done with the consent of impacted people.
What is reskilling?
Reskilling is used to refer to skilling employees to perform jobs and roles that are significantly different from the ones they have been doing. The need for reskilling arises when a job or role-type becomes obsolete or redundant. Rather than losing employees who possess valuable knowledge about the company, and have been doing a commendable job, the company invests in equipping them for other that require skills different from the ones they possess. Effectively, from one specialized job, employees move to a different specialized job.
What is upskilling?
Upskilling could be viewed as a less dramatic change. Though it is possibly a response to developments in the world and the workplace, upskilling is required to equip an individual to perform the role he/she is doing, in a more effective manner. It might result in improved productivity and might also be positioned as a positive career development, being asked to do more. Through upskilling, employees are equipped to cover a wider range of tasks and expectations.
How do they help?
Initiatives like upskilling and reskilling help a company cope and compete. A changing world cannot be controlled by an enterprise. What it can do is keep is make efforts to keep pace with them, either in advance, or after they become embedded.
They create a set of loyal and committed employees and help in reducing attrition. Not everyone gets to work for an organization willing to invest in the development of their employees. Often, it results in employees gaining relevant skills which makes them more valuable and competitive.
The organization is able to buttress its reputation as a company willing to adapt and change and learn, with its efforts at identifying trends and upskilling and reskilling employees. Effectively, it results in a dynamic, forward-looking environment within the company.
Implementation
While many corporations swear by the need to upskill and reskill, they often struggle when the time for action approaches. They find it difficult to identify the roles and employees that need to go through this process of change. Even the shape of the future organization is, sometimes, not very clear.
Leveraging the specialist skills of staffing companies like Ushankk can significantly aid companies’ efforts in this direction. Ushankk, through the manpower support it provides to Fortune 500 companies and many others, has been engaged in the reskilling and upskilling of employees to cater to the evolving needs of its clients.