Upskilling: How to integrate a social dynamic?

The continuous learning of employees has become a strategic challenge for companies that want to develop while promoting the development of employees. Upskilling is one of the new strategies to increase the skills of teams and prepare them for the challenges of tomorrow..

In a world in constant transformation, where jobs and tools are evolving, developing a culture of continuous learning is essential in the age of digitalization. Upskilling represents a set of training courses intended to increase the existing skills of employees in order to allow the continuation of the same profession, or the same field of activity, in a context of change in the profession.. These courses can also be provided in the form of Social learning, to motivate learners to develop skills together.

Here's how to put an upskilling strategy into your business, by putting people at the heart of the process!

Step 1: Know employees and their needs

One of the classic mistakes businesses make when it comes toUpskilling is to focus on their needs and not on those of the individuals who compose it. Thus, employees find themselves forced to follow training programs that are not of interest to them and therefore in which they invest little. On the other hand, employees are much more motivated when they can develop skills and train themselves in the use of new tools in line with their needs and objectives.

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What actions should be put in place?

1. Determine the specific skills that employees need to develop;
2. Identify the tools that can best serve learning goals;
3. Choose learning content and technologies that will allow employees to improve their skills;
4. Ask employees what training formats are best for them.

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Step 2: Investing in skills that will allow employees to evolve

Companies must offer their employees training specific to their position in order to improve their skills current. However, they are not the only ones that need to be developed and it is essential to focus on non-technical skills, in order to make the individuals in the company versatile and to ensure that their positions are scalable and sustainable. Competencies must therefore be complemented by skills and interpersonal skills in order to be implemented.

Among the non-technical skills essential to the progress of employees, there are those that will allow them to evolve into more important positions and will make them strategic elements for the company. They will also allow them to perform better in their current position before a future rise in rank.

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What actions should be put in place?

1. Offer training courses to improve current skills;
2. Identify with employees the desires and opportunities for development;
3. Determine the specific training courses essential for the progress of employees.

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Step 3: Involve managers

The establishment of programs of training corresponding to the needs of employees can only be effective if managers support this strategy. The valorization of behaviors favorable to learning - such as curiosity, kindness or agility - is necessary to support change. Managers should value the time spent on training rather than considering it as a waste of time or an activity carried out at the expense of operational tasks.

The manager and the collaborator must therefore work together to identify The challenges of training continue in the management of the employee's career and then develop an individualized training course together. The manager thus values the increase in the skills of the employee and the company can for its part highlight training as a guarantee of added value in the performance of its teams.

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What actions should be put in place?

1. Identify together the challenges of training and its contributions to the employee's career;
2. Valuing the time spent training;
3. Communicate the added value of training to teams and new recruits.

Step 4: Focus on practice over theory

The principle of vocational training is to acquire knowledge and to be able to put it into practice quickly. In other words, It is necessary to seek and offer training that will make it possible to apply what has been learned in a situation and to transform them into a routine.

Practical implementation is essential for employees to be operational as quickly as possible. So, the upskilling program should reinforce theoretical knowledge and skills through practice, feedback from the trainer and a continuous improvement process. This allows the company to measure the return on investment in training and promotes the development of individuals in their work.

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What actions should be put in place?

1. Offer training courses with an important part left to practice;
2. Ask employees for their feedback on the skills acquired.

Step 5: Evaluate the upskilling program

Any training program must be evaluated in order to know if it meets the expectations of employees and the needs of the company in terms of skills.. Above all, evaluation is a way to verify that the training is not a failure.

To see if a training has really paid off and added value, it is necessary to identify important training indicators, analyze them and adjust the training program according to the results. In particular, this makes it possible to know if skills development programs are effective or if they need to be completely revised.

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What actions should be put in place?

1. Identify important training indicators and then evaluate them at the end of each training course;
2. Gather feedback from users.

What to remember

There are 5 main steps to integrate social dynamics into an Upskilling program:

1. Know employees and their needs;
2. Investing in skills that will allow employees to evolve;
3. Involve managers;
4. Give priority to practice over theory;
5. Evaluate the upskilling program.

To do this, here are the actions to be put in place:

1. Determine the specific skills that employees need to develop;
2. Identify the tools that can best serve learning goals;
3. Choose learning content and technologies that will allow employees to improve their skills;
4. Ask employees what training formats are best for them;
5. Offer training courses to improve current skills;
6. Identify with employees the desires and opportunities for development;
7. Determine the specific training courses essential for the progress of employees;
8. Identify together the challenges of training and its contributions to the employee's career;
9. Valuing the time spent training;
10. Communicate the added value of training to teams and new recruits;
11. Offer training courses with an important part left to practice;
12. Ask employees for their feedback on the skills acquired;
13. Identify important training indicators and then evaluate them at the end of each training course;
14. Gather feedback from users.