Thanks to a black swan event and other disruptors, the workplace has been transformed beyond recognition. Today, work is dynamic and driven by a transformation in every aspect. The forces of disruption include ceaseless advancements in technology, the evolving nature of jobs and demographic shifts, among others.
For instance, before 2020, few would have envisioned that millions of people globally could work from home productively. But the coronavirus pandemic disrupted the traditional model of working from offices owing to pandemic-related restrictions and social distancing norms. Overnight, almost all the organisations had to allow employees to work from home since that was the only way they could keep their businesses running.
The sudden, unforeseen disruption of working life highlighted that remote work and ‘work-from-home’ regimes could keep operations running even without stepping into the office. It only required connectivity and the right infrastructure to work online while connecting with colleagues and conducting meetings virtually.
Of course, things were not as simple for companies operating in the BFSI domain since data security issues remained one of the overriding concerns. But these companies quickly reviewed their user policies and developed new protocols to ensure data security in the WFH era. This included sensitising users about not using public Wi-Fi and shared systems to prevent any leaks or data breaches along with greater oversight by internal IT teams.
According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) however, the sudden shift to working digitally has created a reskilling crisis. The WEF believes that by 2030, it will become imperative to reskill more than a billion people. This is because many companies deployed artificial intelligence, robots, chatbots and similar cognitive solutions that helped to improve their services and the speed and quality of outcomes.
Even as technology provided solutions to keep operations humming, it also created a sudden demand for people with the skills and capabilities to manage AI-enabled tools. In such a scenario, organisations needed to reskill employees to make their workforce future-ready.
Reskilling is imperative because tomorrow’s workforce will need people to work alongside AI-enabled machines that are designed to complement (or enhance) their skills and reduce workload. For example, chatbots can answer customer queries, robots can undertake tedious or dangerous tasks, drones could deal with safety inspections and deliveries, and cognitive tools can analyse and provide insights from vast amounts of data. Consequently, such a future-ready workforce will need to be resilient, flexible and adaptable to changing workplace dynamics.
Unlike the past when traditional skills meant employees retained relevance till they retired, skilling and learning are now an ongoing and lifelong process. Alongside constant learning and upskilling, organisations also need to keep a few other elements in mind, including:
A people-centric approach: It is vital to ensure that employees regularly connect with their teams and customers at all levels. In essence, while always keeping employee welfare in mind, customers must be at the heart of every activity, ensuring they are provided exceptional service. If the employees are happy, they will keep the customers happy.
This outcome can be achieved via multiple measures such as retraining the existing workforce through constant engagement, clearly communicating the “WIIFM” (what’s in it for me) and implementing processes and policies that are employee-centric as well as customer-driven. For employees, flexible work hours and the provision for family time are small techniques that could do the trick.
A workplace where leaders are encouraged to be growth-oriented and solution-driven: Leaders must set clear expectations and have boundaries that are both practical and sustainable over the long term. Teams need to be told about the ‘Why’ and ‘What’ of things while empowering them to find out and accomplish the ‘How’ of execution. Companies should also co-create workable solutions and encourage cross-functional collaborations. Rather than mundane KRAs (key result areas) that are activity/task-driven, companies should establish more output-driven outcomes and goals (with measures). Leaders should also spend more time with teams and motivate them to keep performing at higher levels.
Constant learning and upskilling should be embedded in the workflow: Continuous learning and upskilling should be integrated and embedded within the workflow with the help of training tools and learning activities. These are readily available and applicable instantly in real-time. Since the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach doesn’t work in the current context, byte-sized training might be an option, while focussing on self-paced learning. Implementation at work should be tracked and the workplace behavioural changes gauged eventually by projects undertaken at work, cross-training across functions, time out for training days, etc. This may be accomplished with numerous dipsticks and measures linked to business objectives such as a dip in attrition, improvement in performance, etc.
Leveraging technology and automation: This can be achieved by leveraging automation through simple protocols to create uncomplicated, workable solutions that automate processes; thereby, making them less dependent on human resources. Companies should also move away from complex excel worksheets to HRMS integrations. This would entail utilising technology in performance measurement via output-driven goals while tracking the engagement of people as well.
With the ever-increasing pace of change, technology is only part of the solution. Ultimately, the success of an organisation lies in maximising the potential of its human workforce. It will take all of the measures outlined above to ensure the present-day workforce becomes future-ready.
(The author is Mr. Tarandeep Rekhi, Lead- Learning & Capability at mPokket. mPokket is a member of FACE. and the views expressed in this article are his own)
