Reskilling: How to Reskill Your Workforce

New technologies, automation, and the constant churn of the modern workplace are creating fresh challenges for employers. One of the biggest is a shortage of skilled specialists who can keep up with shifting business needs. So how do you close the gap? How do you give your people the skills they actually need? One answer is investing in upskilling, which we covered a while back. Today we want to talk about its sibling. In this article, you'll learn what reskilling is and what it has to do with onboarding.

What is reskilling?

Reskilling means retraining within the same company. We also use the term when talking about an employee returning after an extended absence. People in that situation often need to pick up new skills to find their footing in a role that has changed significantly while they were away. In short, reskilling is the process of employees gaining new competencies so they can take on a different role inside the organization. 

Zoom out, and reskilling is also a response to the talent shortage across the labor market. The data shows this is a global and increasingly real problem. A Korn Ferry report warns that by 2030 as many as 85 million jobs could go unfilled, all because of a lack of skilled workers. The World Economic Forum (WEF), in turn, has calculated that roughly one billion workers will need to be reskilled by that same year.

How are reskilling and upskilling different? 

Upskilling and reskilling share a common thread: both are about learning. But they're not interchangeable. 

• Upskilling, unlike reskilling, means building on skills someone already has, deepening expertise and keeping knowledge current. It's about broadening competencies, not acquiring them in a brand-new area. 
• Reskilling always involves a shift in career path and stepping into a new role. Upskilling, by contrast, equips an employee with skills tied to their current position.

Why invest in reskilling your people?

The list of benefits is surprisingly long, and, importantly, it works both ways: for the employer and the employee alike. In short? Investing in reskilling is a genuine win-win.

Benefits for employers

• Lower recruiting and onboarding costs - onboarding someone who has reskilled is mostly about operational details. It's shorter and less expensive than bringing in a brand-new hire. The same goes for recruiting: filling roles with external candidates adds costs tied to recruiter time, agency fees, and your managers' valuable hours.
• Fewer layoffs - reskilling often protects employees from being let go, for example when a position is eliminated. 
• Greater versatility - people who pick up entirely new skills and change roles bring unique cross-functional experience. That lets them look at problems and challenges from a different angle, which can make them more effective.
• A stronger employer brand - the chance to grow in a new field is often an attractive perk. An organization that invests in reskilling can stand out as an employer of choice in the eyes of potential candidates.
• More loyalty - employees value organizations that invest in their development and work to keep talent in-house. 

Benefits for employees

• Higher productivity and effectiveness - employees who get to grow in a new area feel valued. They gain a fresh sense of purpose, become more motivated, and tackle challenges with renewed energy.
• A sense of stability - reskilling brings greater job security. Knowing that your employer is open to solutions that keep you on board makes for a more comfortable place to work. 
• Professional growth - gaining new competencies and experience in a new role enriches an employee's career path and makes them more marketable.

Reskilling - best practices

The market offers a whole range of training methods and reskilling programs. Here are four universal practices that can serve as the pillars of the entire process.

• 360 feedback - sharing feedback among employees, customers, and business partners. According to a European Commission report, it's one of the most effective ways to identify skill gaps. 
• Job shadowing - following another employee as they work. The person learning observes their colleague without actively taking on the duties. It's a great, low-pressure way for an employee to see what a new role really looks like.
• Specialized external courses and certifications - sometimes reskilling requires earning specific credentials. In those cases, formal training is a must.
• Digital learning - in an era of remote and hybrid work, online training is a nod to employees, and employers stand to gain too. By investing one billion dollars in employee development, Accenture increased training hours by 6% while cutting costs by 11%, all thanks to digital learning platforms.

What does any of this have to do with employee onboarding?

More than you'd think! Reskilling means changing someone's professional profile. As a result, the organization ends up with an "old-but-new" employee: a familiar face, but new skills and a new role to step into. How do you bridge those two worlds? How do you make sure taking on new responsibilities doesn't feel overwhelming?

We recommend building a reskilling onboarding path. Think of it as onboarding in a condensed form. In this kind of process, preboarding and introducing someone to the company culture aren't necessary. But there are other things worth keeping in mind.

• Plan the process ahead of time. Break it into stages and set clear timeframes. This helps structure and organize the transition.
• Make sure the employee is brought up to speed on the operational side of their new role.
• Assign a buddy or mentor to guide them through the journey.
• Schedule recurring check-ins and job shadowing sessions throughout the process.
• Treat the whole thing like onboarding. Keep both the organization's needs and the employee's needs in mind. 
• As with classic onboarding, set a goal of getting the employee to full autonomy in their work.

Want to make reskilling easier for your employees while streamlining the entire process and keeping it under control? Run reskilling in Gamfi Onboarding - an app that automates onboarding into a new job, a new role, or a new professional situation.