Despite the pressure to upskill and adapt to the digital era, workers are eager to learn
There’s a critical gap between the learning and development programs employers offer and what their employees really want.
In LinkedIn’s Future of Skills 2019 report, one in three workers in Australia said they have quit a job in the past because they were unimpressed by their employers’ L&D initiatives.
Australians (53%) know the skills they need to thrive in the digital era are changing. But from the point of view of employers, only about half of the workforce is equipped for the future.
While this rapid shift has left workers (39%) “feeling daunted,” many are in fact motivated to upskill:
- 46% want to prepare for the future of work
- 41% want to fast-track their career
- 29% want to “mitigate their fear of redundancy”
LinkedIn data showed the top three skills Australians have been cultivating in the past five years are:
- Continuous integration
- Workflow automation
- Social media marketing
Hard skills vs soft skills
Employers and staff, however, don’t see eye to eye when it comes to other competencies. LinkedIn found organisations tend to focus on critical thinking and industry-specific skills, while employees (52%) desire to be trained on soft skills such as adaptability and flexibility.
“We can see a misalignment between what motivates many employees to learn compared to what most employers are pursuing,” said Jason Laufer, senior director of learning solutions for LinkedIn (Asia Pacific).
“Australian employees are more typically driven to learn for personal and professional fulfilment; however, employers are focusing on career progression.”
Despite the current gap, organisations are continually exploring and investing in L&D programs, especially since employee training has been found to yield significant returns, such as higher productivity and greater staff retention.
“Over a quarter of Australian employer’s (27%) also said offering L&D increases overall revenue,” Laufer noted. “With such clear business benefits, it is important that employers adopt a more holistic, ‘always-on’ approach to learning and development.”
