Ushering the digital revolution and upskilling personnel as part of the best HR practices will enable new-age learning in organisations to boost productivity and retain skilled talent.

The first quarter of this century led to massive changes in skills requirements across organisations owing to the development and penetration of technology-based applications. The buzz created by the Y2K bug kicked off an IT revolution resulting in an overhaul of organisations. This also led to HR Teams ushering in next-gen changes as part of their best practices, a giant leap from the traditional methods of upskilling. 

Twenty years later, the pandemic brought another industry disruption that has led to several ‘firsts’ and bolstered the adoption of several cutting-edge technologies at the workplace. Learning and development (L&D) received priority, and innovative learning solutions had to be introduced for organisations to stay relevant in the here and now. Though forced, this mandated organisations to have robust technology-led - and in many cases - AI-enabled L&D strategies to embrace the unplanned change to integrate continuous skilling and reskilling to build competencies and enhance organisations’ capabilities.

While there are so many things that could be done, I have taken the liberty to share a few measures that would enable organisations and businesses to usher in technology-led conversations.  In a way forcing both L&D leaders and line managers to relook at their strategies to make them continuous, robust, and productive.

Building technology learning infrastructure

Firstly, L&D practitioners need to shift into top gear by embracing technology, building supporting infrastructure to create engaging conversations and facilitate new-age learning for their employees. Learning through AI, ML, VR and AR, and now the Metaverse will encapsulate audiences and make upskilling sessions highly interesting and engaging. 

Gamification will continue to help create next-gen learning and connect employees across diversified geographies and time zones. It will lead to a higher engagement ratio with e-learning mechanisms and need-based simulations. Technology has made world class learning accessible sitting in the comfort of our homes. Capturing, tracking, and performance monitoring and an improved learner experience requires a digital learning ecosystem that can support multiple systems simultaneously. As systems evolve and expand, organisations will need to invest in building a strong learning tech stack to provide an integrated experience to the learner.

Reforming content led learning

L&D managers face several challenges, especially when it comes to getting time commitments from employees for their learning initiatives. Truth be told, it becomes a “task” to get the learner to attend. Traditional learning and skilling formats are lengthy, verbose, and monotonous. Content consumption patterns have changed for good; it is now all about the 3A’s - Anything, Anywhere, and Anytime. Mobile learning with app-based sessions that are engaging, witty, conversational, and comprehensive is the new “swag”. 

The 2019 Workplace Study revealed that learning is hampered due to longer sessions and becomes a roadblock to upskilling. It is pertinent for organisations to introduce micro-learning for their learners if they truly want to enable upskilling, reskilling and even skilling.Technology today, can help create byte sized learning accessible even for a learner with limited connectivity or access to internet. 

Moving to a learner centric medium

Covid-imposed restrictions have enabled HR leaders to revisit strategies brought about by the change in their working environment. There is a need to move away from a classroom-based approach to develop a self-paced and time-bound learning mechanism enabling learners to update their skills at will. 

Personalised learning solutions will help organisations move beyond the one-size-fits-all approach, and learning can get concentrated on a particular skill set. It will also reduce the clutter of exposing learners to unwanted modules and allow them to adapt better. While organisations cannot do away with standardisation, customisation for learners to enable them to upskill will be the key differentiator.

Exposure to life skills and leadership training to groom future leaders

While a significant effort is put into general upskilling and training employees to stay abreast with the latest technology, L&D practitioners should aim to build certain personality-driven traits that complement its leadership programmes. It will create a pathway to identify future managers and potential business leaders who can drive future growth. 

Regular interactive and mentoring sessions for potential employees will enable them to understand the organisation's future requirements. Having a strong mentorship programme can help build great organisational leadership pipeline. Many of my peers have created differentiation by focussing on power skills and have upskilled their employees on a wide variety of topics including negotiation skills, interactive communications, and active listening, among others. Beyond the traditional behavioural skills training, life skills and wellbeing are now integral to an L&D practitioner’s agenda. 

Enabling change through counselling

Hybrid working is an evolving concept that we didn’t plan for. L&D managers are now expected to get employees at pace with the changes in the organisation and initiate psychological and counselling sessions to assist them in adopting change. In the good old days these were traumatic experiences. Today, these are available online, with guaranteed confidentiality at the click of a button. Making wellness accessible would ensure employees are integrated as part of the transition process and are assisted during any potential disruptions in future.

While adapting to the fast-changing technologies may be slow and sometimes painful, learning from best practices, coupled with effective strategizing can help build a great learner centric organisation. 

Start small and start now!