Upskilling vs Reskilling

With the arrival of Artificial Intelligence, automation and constant technological advances, many employees feel they need to invest more in their development so as not to be left behind in the face of so many new developments. It is thought that by 2030, around 375 million employees will need to learn new skills.

A report prepared by ATD on the future of work, Bridging the Skills Gap: Workforce Development and the Future of Work, presents the results of a survey conducted on the subject with executives from large companies, where 83 percent of those interviewed are convinced that their organisation has a significant skills gap. They seriously consider that, with the skills currently installed in their companies, they will not be able to drive the changes required by the company’s strategy, market objectives or new business models.

“Skills I have vs Skills I need”

All right, but where to start to bring about change?

Renowned writer Ben Eubanks states in his report “Meeting Tomorrow’s Skills Demands Today” that people should consider various factors to identify the skills they don’t currently have or that are not required of them, but which will be needed in the future.

He explains in his report that it is best to identify these skills:

1. He explains in his report that the best way to identify these skills is to: Understand the strategy of the company in which we work for the coming years and the type of people and skills it will require.
2. Map the skills that exist within the organisation. Recording employees’ skills and understanding who might be a good candidate for upskilling (i.e. developing additional skills to help the individual be even more valuable and knowledgeable in their current role) and who would be better suited to taking advantage of reskilling opportunities (i.e. developing significantly different skills for those whose roles change and who must start work in a new position, in a new working environment and with completely different duties to their previous ones). Both concepts aim to increase knowledge, but differ in the purpose behind each one.

Are there companies already doing this?

Today, some of our clients are already making this move and creating what some call Strategic Workforce Planning to define, considering the company’s strategy for the next 5 to 10 years, which positions and profiles will be needed. Then, using tools such as assessments, they analyse the gap between the profiles they currently have and those that will be required in the future.

From there, a variety of internal actions are triggered and must be set in motion, transforming Human Resources into a strategic area, as it must be the engine behind all these initiatives, accelerating and coordinating internal areas such as Commercial, Operations, IT, etc. A movement in companies begins that has no turning back, with Human Resources being the leader of this organisational transformation.

And are people aware of the need for these changes?

This is not just a movement for organisations. People must be aware that they need to reinvent themselves so that they don’t become obsolete, as Zygmunt Bauman, the renowned Polish sociologist, points out when explaining his Liquid Society Theory: “people need to have a fluid identity, no one can become an interesting subject without first becoming a commodity, and no one can maintain their attractiveness without perpetually reviving, resurrecting and recharging the capacities expected and required of a saleable commodity”. This reflection leads us to evaluate and analyse what is best for each of us and for our organisation, and to constantly act to adapt. This is why the famous “Lifelong Learning”, or “continuous learning”, has emerged. Today, we must learn and unlearn every day if we want to stay up to date in the corporate environment.

For sure, whether it’s upskilling or reskilling, change has to happen!