The Upskilling Challenge
2020 was a year that paved the way to ensure a Digital Work Environment. A flexible, knowledgeable workforce and culture built on resilience was something that emerged as a winning path. The potential of being Digital and its use in narrowing the Skilling gap has been at the forefront in the past year.
During the pandemic lockdowns, many people at home also found themselves with more time to focus on professional development and reconsider what career path they wanted to take, keeping their future aspirations. Having more options for online learning, training and obtaining credentials also allowed many people an increased opportunity to reskill and upskill in all domains from the safety of their homes during the pandemic.
Specialized talent in emerging areas such as Data Science, Big Data, Machine Learning, and Cloud Computing became popular choices of certifications by Professionals. Furthermore, Corporate India has been investing in Live Projects to groom talent and enhance the learning experience of their employees.
The latest PwC Annual Global CEO Survey revealed that in Companies that had introduced an upskilling program, 60% said their program was highly effective in improving culture and employee engagement. In the PwC 2020 Global Digital IQ survey, 86% of respondents said their digital training and education programs had enhanced employee engagement and performance. And according to Gallup, highly engaged business units have a 41% reduction in absenteeism and a 17% increase in productivity. Additionally, they receive better customer ratings and log higher sales and profits than those units with lower engagement.
Furthermore, leaders who value and nurture their workforce’s innate talents, ability to learn, and desire to do good work will boost their business and retain and attract talent. They will beat the skills gap. So, while most companies are taking steps to keep employees safe and healthy, it’s essential to ensure they have the skills to thrive as they contribute to the organization’s overall success in a virtual workspace.
There’s a measurable connection between successful upskilling and employee engagement.
At Emeritus India, the need of the hour is to address the “Upskilling Challenge.” As Ashwin Damera, CEO of Eruditus Executive Education, said in one of his interviews, “The world is being driven by AI, data science, digitization, quantum computing and other trends. To continue to be successful, professionals will have to imbibe new skills and knowledge. Upskilling is going to be the differentiator in the knowledge economy. That’s the education challenge we are solving, and we solve it uniquely by partnering with top-ranked universities.”
~ Shivam Gupta
