How To Engage Employees In Reskilling Programs

5 Best Practices To Make Reskilling Engaging

Big Data and AI have brought big changes to the way we work, eliminating positions and creating others. As a result, businesses have had to rethink how they train their employees in order to better keep up with current conditions. Reskilling and upskilling, specifically, are rightfully gaining an important position in company cultures, as they are extremely effective at promoting internal mobility, boosting employee engagement, and ultimately, increasing productivity. However, for businesses to experience these benefits, employees must be willing to participate. In this article, we discuss 5 tips that will help you engage employees in reskilling and turn resistance into willingness.

Ensuring Employee Buy-In In 5 Steps

1. Involve Leaders

We can’t really expect employees to cultivate a learning culture all on their own. The secret behind engaging them in the idea of learning and bettering themselves is starting from the top. Discuss and develop with the leaders of your organization a vision of transformation through reskilling and let it trickle down to the rest of the employees. In addition to acting as an example of continuous learning, leaders can also act as mentors for employees. They can create personalized career paths with the members of their team and encourage them to participate in reskilling programs that will put them on a fast track toward their success.

2. Make Reskilling Accessible To All

For your reskilling program to have the results and participation you want, it must be easily accessible by all. At a time when a large percentage—or even the majority—of the workforce is working outside of the office, it’s crucial that learning is provided in many different ways. An idea that guarantees participation is going mobile. Encouraging employees to use their smartphones to reskill eliminates the need to come into the office for face-to-face learning sessions and gives them the freedom to train even outside of working hours. Moreover, it standardizes training for all employees regardless of their location, thus reducing the phenomenon of proximity bias.

3. Focus On Personalization And Fun

To successfully engage employees in reskilling, you must guarantee not only accessibility but also personalization. Implementing a one-size-fits-all approach is usually the reason behind ineffective reskilling programs. Incentivize employees to train by discovering their preferred learning methods. Do they favor long-form modules over bite-sized material? Do they learn better on their own, or do they need a (virtual) instructor? In addition, consider utilizing gamification to make the process more entertaining. Create serious games and let employees compete with each other by sharing their achievements. Socialization is of utmost importance, as it promotes communication and collaboration, motivates through friendly competition, and makes the learning experience more enjoyable.

4. Align Learning With Goals

The ultimate motivator for employees is realizing that there is a purpose driving the reskilling program. Participating in training courses for skills that have nothing to do with their current position or their future goals will quickly lead to frustration and disengagement. To avoid that, make sure that each step of the learning process is aligned with SMART goals that have been carefully designed with each employee in mind. It’s best if you revisit these goals every once in a while to discuss updates or make adjustments to achieve better results.

5. Rely On Technology

The final tip you need to keep in mind to engage employees in the reskilling process is that you must treat technology as an ally rather than a distractor. In this modern age of business, technology has become a necessary tool for bridging distances, supporting collaboration, and boosting productivity. Therefore, don’t be afraid to invest in high-quality Learning Management Systems, communications platforms, project management software, and anything else you need to ensure the smooth operation of your organization. Having access to advanced and easy-to-use solutions encourages employees to connect with their colleagues, share knowledge and information, and keep track of their tasks as well as their learning progress.

Conclusion

Keeping up with industry trends has become more challenging than ever as new advancements change the way we work, retain employees, and attract customers. Thankfully, a well-designed reskilling strategy can uncover hidden talents, fill positions, and make your business more efficient and profitable. However, you will only be able to achieve all that with the eager collaboration and participation of your employees. Follow the tips we shared in this article, and you will surely be able to engage employees easily in the reskilling program of your choice.