But the cat is out of the bag. While the rise of technology is fueling rapid change, it’s also providing companies with the means to keep up. Of course, we’re talking about online employee training (and retraining, and retraining again) to keep workplace skills relevant.
That’s right. Human skills might look different in the future, but they’ll still be there in the future.
Why the future of your business depends on employee training
There have always been many benefits in offering training to employees. Training helps companies achieve their goals, while also giving employees the learning opportunities they need to keep moving forward in their careers. But “beneficial” is no longer a sufficient description of staff training.
Here are the top reasons why investing in employee training has become not just important, but also essential.
Automation makes workforce training even more essential
The gig economy has given two-letter terms like AI, AR, and VR the power to leave people (and whole organizations) shaking in their boots. Why? Because the idea of losing their relevance to a robot is not just scary anymore. It’s actually possible. And if humans aren’t needed to fill jobs, then why is training and development important, right?
Actually, we happen to think that humans, and the need to train employees, are more important than ever before. Here’s why.
Driverless cars might eliminate taxi drivers, eLearning might threaten the role of lecturers. And, sure, chatbots are probably going to leave call centers a little quieter than before. But who will engineer driverless cars, build online courses, and program chatbots? Your employees will. But only if (and it’s a big if) they have been trained in the skills to do so.
Continuous employee training increases agility
In a global economy that keeps evolving, the most successful companies will be those that adapt quickly and effectively. So, one of the key reasons for training employees is that it keeps their knowledge fresh, their skills sharp, and their confidence booming – especially when training is accessible online.
Think about it: employees are likely to face novel challenges while on the job. When they don’t have the knowledge or skills to respond effectively and quickly, business and customers suffer while the competition swoops in. But if employees can access the information they need immediately, on the job, they’ll become tools for agility in an environment of change.
Plus, change is scary and the future is uncertain. So, while you might not be able to prepare employees for jobs that don’t yet exist, you can use training to equip them with skills that will make them confident, competent and agile when confronted with change.
Skill development makes employees happy
What do employees want more than anything else? According to Gallup, it’s the opportunity to learn. In fact, ongoing training is considered the most important decision-making factor by job seekers today. Your staff gets the chance to develop skills, learn new ones, and get better in their field. And this is exactly why training is important for employees.
But training isn’t just useful for attracting top talent. When your existing employees see that you’re investing in their growth they become happy, loyal, and engaged in their work. Hang on, why is this so important?
Because the future is one where companies will seek out talent more than talent seeks out jobs. You’ll need employees who are leading the skill development race. And if you’ve got them already, you’ll need to give them a reason to turn a blind eye to poachers with flashy job offers. This is the importance of investing in employee training.
Learning is a competitive advantage
Remember when needing new shoes meant that you had to walk into a store and buy them? Or when further education meant night classes at a university campus? As a shoe store or a university, your competition was limited to the other shoe stores and universities in a 12-mile radius.
Things have changed, though. Today, almost every company is competing in a global market. Consumers have a wide variety of choices, because the internet and technology have made products and services accessible to (almost) everyone. And this makes staff training your number one competitive advantage.
Higher quality products, more efficient service delivery and more helpful customer support will set your company apart from the competition. Achieving this will require employees who aren’t just good, but the best at what they do. And to become the best and remain the best, they’ll need continuous workplace training.
Your employees need access to ongoing learning from everywhere
It’s true that technology has brought a tornado of change upon most industries today. And this, in turn, has increased the importance of training employees. But technology has also been kind enough to present companies with convenient, efficient and accessible solutions for ongoing learning and development.
For example, eLearning courses help companies deliver consistent training to geographically dispersed teams. Microlearning content allows employees to learn on demand, and in a way that is relevant to them. Not least of all, gamification makes training fun and engaging, even when employees are under time pressure.
Plus, you can achieve all of this without the usual costs and headaches associated with classroom-based training. That’s an efficient, loyal and engaged workforce, without the need for travel logistics and expenses. This means that the very availability of learning technology has become a reason to invest in training.
Conclusion
Robots might be in your future, but they’re not the future. Your future lies in continuous, relevant and on-demand employee training that develops the skills employees will need for the jobs they don’t yet know they’ll have. The future is coming. Are you ready for it?
