Reskilling is becoming a priority for many organizations in candidate-scarce markets. But what are the main benefits to reskilling and how can you start a reskilling initiative in your organization?
The reskilling imperative
The World Economic Forum estimates that, between 2020 and 2025, half of the globe’s total workforce will need reskilling. And, according to data from Gartner, the skills required for any given job increase by 10% year-over-year.
Particularly in candidate-short markets like tech and healthcare, innovative approaches are needed to tackle skills gaps and ensure businesses have the skills they need to compete in a modern marketplace. And, when done correctly, research shows that reskilling can be an extremely powerful tool for any organization looking to solve internal skills gaps and improve talent utilization/productivity.
So why should you choose to reskill your existing employees, and what are the main benefits to reskilling or upskilling?
The main benefits to reskilling your team
So what are the main benefits to upskilling or reskilling a team? As a world-leading talent creation and enablement partner who help tech organizations to build affordable cloud talent pipelines in candidate-scarce markets, we have seen several benefits to reskilling and upskilling throughout our sector.
For one, tech companies that employ reskilling see better talent utilization rates, as they are able to move employees into more in-demand technologies. Additionally, by investing in their existing talent and providing career development opportunities, these organizations see significantly improved retention rates.
Beyond this, there are, of course, financial benefits. Reskilling existing employees can be a cost-effective solution to generating the talent you need, which saves on hiring and training costs.
And our own experience is largely aligned with other organizations that work in candidate-scarce markets and high-demand technologies. We asked John Price, CEO of SubRosa for his thoughts on upskilling, this is what he said:
Increased productivity and efficiency
“I think that businesses can be more productive and efficient if they help their workers learn new skills. By giving workers the training and tools they need to do their jobs better, they can boost their output and cut the time it takes to finish tasks.”
Better morale and retention of employees
“Investing in training and development for employees can also boost morale and cut down on turnover. When employees feel like their employer cares about their growth and development, they are more likely to be happy and interested in their work. This leads to less turnover and lower costs for hiring new employees. We see this in my company and industry as a whole.”
Better advantages in highly competitive markets
“In markets that are becoming more and more competitive, businesses that invest in training and development for their employees are more likely to have an edge. Businesses are better able to stay ahead of the competition when their employees have the skills and knowledge to keep up with changes in technology and industry trends. A skilled and knowledgeable workforce can also help businesses get new customers and keep the ones they already have, which can lead to more revenue and market share.”
Which sectors can benefit the most from reskilling employees?
While any organization or sector can benefit from reskilling or upskilling, there are certain sectors that could benefit from an immediate boost in the supply of skilled, technical professionals – those with the greatest (or most technical) skills gaps.
Based on his experience, John Price believes that there are three sectors that are most likely to see the greatest skills shortage in the next 2-3 years. They are:
Tech
“Many companies are having trouble filling open positions because they can’t find workers with the necessary expertise to keep up with the ever-accelerating pace of technological change. Software developers, data scientists, and cybersecurity are all examples of this. We already have a requirement for an additional 500,000 cyber security professionals in North America alone!”
Healthcare
“Demand for healthcare is expected to rise as the global population ages, but many countries are already struggling with a shortage of healthcare professionals. This includes roles such as nurses, doctors, and other healthcare professionals.”
Skilled labor
“The baby boomer generation is retiring, creating a labor shortage in industries such as construction, manufacturing, and the skilled trades. This category also contains occupations like plumbers, carpenters, and electricians. I do want to caveat that with the fact that this can be influenced by many factors such as economic conditions, technological advancements, and demographic changes plus the fact that we are seeing many industries adopting technological breakthroughs to mitigate skilled labor shortage.”
How to reskill or upskill your workforce into cloud technologies
With so many organizations struggling to fill open positions, the technology sector is well-placed to benefit from reskill programs – both at an organizational level and sector-wide.
If your organization would like to unlock the full potential of your existing team, boost retention rates, and close cloud skills gaps, the Revolent ReSkill program can help.
As cloud talent creation and enablement experts, we know what it takes to create and develop incredible tech talent. Our specialized reskill programs can equip your employees with advanced certifications, practical experience in a business setting, and the consultative skills they need to make an impact on your organization from day one.
What’s more, the training programs can be tailored around your existing projects, minimizing disruption to your organization whilst ensuring your teams have the skills needed to drive business growth.
The programs are run by our in-house vendor-certified training teams (which deliver some of the highest first-time pass rates throughout the ecosystem) and can train your professionals in AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Cloud, or Salesforce.
Benefits of the Revolent ReSkill program
We can help your organization to:
- Close your cloud skills gap – investing in reskilling is an incredibly efficient way to generate the talent your organization needs most.
- Increase talent utilization and productivity – reskilling allows you to shift talent into higher bill rate technologies
- Diversify your teams and skill sets – reskilling can enable you to support a multi-cloud strategy
Additionally, reskilling is a more cost-effective way to build the skills your team needs, while also increasing the retention rates of your best talent.
How Revolent ReSkill bootcamps work
Our training gets results because we go far beyond simple certification training and focus on developing strong consultative skills and practical application, ensuring reskilled employees can hit the ground running from day one. We do this by building our training around three core pillars:
Certification preparation
We embed strong theoretical and conceptual knowledge at the start of our bootcamp. All ReSkillers (professionals who undergo our reskill program) complete mock exams, section-level quizzes, definition quizzes, and knowledge checks, before taking their certification tests which result in our industry leading first-time certification pass rate.
Hands-on experience and practical application
60% of the learning time is spent in a sandbox environment ensuring ReSkillers are able to apply their knowledge to real-world challenges and be immediately productive. ReSkillers gain this experience through practical exercises, tech tasks, reflection sessions, and instructor demos.
Consultancy skills development
During the training, we provide comprehensive consultancy skills training including project methodologies, requirements gathering, documentation, and stakeholder management. This ensures ReSkillers have the consulting acumen and business skills needed to lead on or deliver core projects.
Want to develop cloud talent in your organization, while improving staff retention? Learn more about our ReSkill program here.
