Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2021 - 34

see how people are filling their skills
gaps. You can also track:
*	 Trending skills - by surveying
employees on the skills they view as
critical.
*	 Skills by department or business unit.
*	 Skills by group.
*	 Skills by role.
*	 Skill certifications,
credentials earned.

badges

and

Data can come from content providers,
a learning experience platform (LXP)
or other upskilling solutions.

posted that lists data science as a
critical skill. The worker can apply, and
continually develop their new skills.
Simultaneously, the manager gets a
motivated, internal candidate.
Internal mobility initiatives like this
reinforce learning as well. Research
shows that people forget an average
of 90% of what they've learned within
a month unless its applied.

STEP 7: COMMUNICATE
METRICS OF SUCCESS
Demonstrate how your upskilling
strategy is impacting your business
priorities, and reinforce the value
it delivers. To communicate your

STEP 6: MATCH SKILLS
TO OPPORTUNITIES
Help leaders recognize what talent
already exists in your organization.
You can do this by creating a dynamic
career marketplace for internal mobility
that connects your people with new
projects, stretch assignments, gig
work and even completely new jobs.

Demonstrate how your
upskilling strategy is
impacting your business
priorities, and reinforce
the value it delivers.

Let's say a worker who's learning data
science skills sees an internal project

success, choose metrics important
to your business leaders and
stakeholders. These can include,
but aren't limited to, employee
engagement, time to productivity,
workforce retention, sharing and
collaboration, percentage of people
working on new assignments, new
roles, and revenue growth.

WHEN IN DOUBT,
KEEP IT SIMPLE
If you're a people leader, upskilling is
a great opportunity to drive positive
and impactful business results. That
said, upskilling doesn't have to be
complicated. Take it step by step. If
you're looking for a good place to
start, talk to the head of a business
unit and identify three to five critical
skills people need. Gather preliminary
results and feedback, and keep
building from there.
Kelly Palmer is a thought leader
on the future of work, learning and
career development. She is the
chief learning and talent officer at
Degreed, co-author of the book, " The
Expertise Economy, " and the former
chief learning officer of LinkedIn.
Email Kelly.

Avoid an Upskilling Fail in 7 Steps
You can give upskilling life, and make 2021 a big learning success in seven steps:
1.	 Identify future skills:
Determine which
critical skills your
workers will need to
help your business
thrive in the coming
years.
2.	 Assess skills: Establish
a baseline of current
capabilities, so you can
measure progress.

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3.	 Set upskilling goals:
Add targets goals to fill
skill gaps.
4.	 Map learning to
skills: Decide which
methods you'll use to
achieve your goals.

5.	 Measure skill
progress: Continually
track progress against
a series of metrics.
6.	 Match skills to
opportunities: Connect
people with new
projects to continue
learning.

7.	 Communicate metrics
of success: Show
leaders how upskilling
impacts your business,
reinforcing its value.
https://www.growthengineering.co.uk/what-is-the-forgetting-curve/ https://www.growthengineering.co.uk/what-is-the-forgetting-curve/
Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2021
