Do you ever wonder why employers encourage employees to learn new things every day? Does it sound like a burden to you or are you one of those employees who happily agree to sit for hours in boring workshops? Some question 'Is upskilling really the key to success? Or is it just a way to keep employees occupied so they do not spend their time in activities not directly beneficial to the organization?'
To talk about whether upskilling is actually beneficial or not, we need to establish what upskilling actually is. The scope of this article is to discuss how upskilling is a win for both employees and their companies. After establishing how upskilling is important, we will see why it is important as well.
What is Upskilling?
To begin, upskilling is when someone makes a conscious effort to enhance the skills they already possess in order to become relevant and more successful in their respective fields. Upskilling is important for employees to grow further in their careers in terms of knowledge, expertise, and skills, and gain more chances of promotions, benefits, better job opportunities, and connections within the industries.
How are new Skills Acquired?
Many employers spend a significant amount of time and effort in training their employees so they can advance in their careers. Upskilling can be done in several ways and forms. Additionally, it does not necessarily have to come from the employer, as employees can take this initiative independently for their professional and personal growth.
Many employers organize frequent workshops, seminars, conferences, and field trips to promote learning and application of specific skills required for specific job roles to be executed well.
Employees can also take charge of their learning independently and can enroll themselves in online courses, self-paced courses, and synchronous or asynchronous learning programs.
Participating in any kind of training program whether as an individual or an employee to enhance one's skills is always a good idea because it usually does not cost much but is a great way of moving beyond the limits that their fields often restrict them to for different reasons.
Although it is fairly safe to say that upskilling is a win for both employees and their companies. But we need to see how and why. 
Advantages of Upskilling- For Employees
Here are the reasons why upskilling is the key to success for employees.
- Opportunities for Growth
- Employment Stability
- Better Pay Packages
- Better Connections
- Knowledge of Industry Trends
- Increased Knowledge and Skills - Productivity
- Edge over Other Candidates
- Heightened Sense of Self
- Ability to Handle Challenges
- Skills to Critically Approach and Solve Problems
We will discuss in great detail how upskilling can be advantageous for employees for their personal and professional growth.
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Opportunities for Growth
Upskilling is the key to success in a way that any employee with a skillset advanced and better than others is given preference when there are opportunities for promotions. Such growth and promotions lead to increased motivation and job satisfaction. Employees like it when they are appreciated and rewarded for their outstanding performance.
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Employment Stability
As a result of upskilling, employees are able to strengthen themselves in the organizations and feel secure as they are needed for their exceptional talent and skills. Such job security is only possible when employees make meaningful contributions toward the organizational goals. Hence upskilling is a key to success only when you keep enhancing yourself to fit the ever-changing needs of the organizations
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Better Pay Packages
Who does not want to get paid well? Since upskilling adds to the experience of employees, their contribution becomes worth more for the added value as a result of productivity that is unmatchable. With upskilling you are doing the same job budget paid more for your expertise in the area!
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Better Connections
When you become a part of different training programs, workshops, and conferences, you meet a diverse range of people from all walks of life. This helps you form connections within and even outside your industry that are certainly not achievable when you choose not to upskill yourself. Connections in the industry lead to better prospects in the future and it is always suggested to form as many connections as possible. Knowing people also encourages learning from other people's experiences and expertise. Which is again an extension of your enhancement of skills.
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Knowledge of Industry Trends
If you are still wondering whether upskilling is important? We will say yes! Because the attempts at upskilling give a person knowledge of the trends in the industry. Having knowledge of which enhances the productivity and performance of tasks that they are responsible for completing. Such talented employees also serve as the bridge between the organization and the industry and help the organization stay relevant.
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Increased Knowledge and Skills - Productivity
Since you are learning new things and applying them while keeping in view the current trends, it automatically makes you more productive as you are achieving the desired results efficiently and effectively. Upskilling is the key to success especially because it doubles the employees’ productivity.
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Edge over Other Candidates
An employee who takes upskilling seriously when appearing for other job interviews with a resume that lists down all the skills they have learned and applied in the past automatically holds an edge over other candidates. If you still wonder 'Is upskilling the key to success?' then know that getting preference in a job hiring process only because your skills are advanced with respect to the growing and changing needs of your specific field is the definition of success to many!
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Heightened Sense of Self
Employees who constantly see themselves as learners on a quest for knowledge and skills are humble and appreciative of the fact that anything can be made better with a little effort. This is why upskilling is important for employees not only for their professional but personal growth as well. To be able to learn you need to identify what you do not know. Philosophical as it may sound, it is true that willingness to learn more makes a person self-aware and helps them work on their flaws and weaknesses for better results in their personal and professional lives.
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Ability to Handle Challenges
Employees who are attuned to working in different environments owing to their continuous training in different forms are more capable of dealing with challenges as compared to employees who do not prefer upskilling for their growth. Since they have experience of being in different situations with different people, they can deal with the challenges easily and more effectively. This is also how upskilling is a win for both employees and their companies.
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Skills to Critically Approach and Solve Problems
As a result of vast exposure and experience, employees with a high level of skills and efficiency can be active critical thinkers and problem solvers. This is one of the major reasons why we think upskilling is important for employees because they can take initiative and solve problems that may create hindrances in the way of their organizational goals.
This is how upskilling is a win for both employees and their companies as employees become highly successful and talented leading to their employers' success as well.
Advantages of Upskilling- For Employers
If you are wondering what organizations get from upskilling their employees; not only do the employees benefit from upskilling, but employers also get a great deal of advantages when their organizations get teams of highly talented and result-driven employees.
These are the ways in which upskilling is the key to success for employers/organizations:
- Highly Productive Employees
- Innovative Teams
- Edge over Competitors
- Teams ready to Take on Challenges
- Reduced Turnover Intention
- Cost Effectiveness
- Harmonious Workplace Culture
- Result-Driven Force
- Workforce Continuity Planning - Leaders in Making
- Adherence to Policies
How upskilling can be a win for the employees and their companies is now being discussed with companies in focus.
- Highly Productive Employees
Organizations that promote upskilling get in turn employees who are highly productive and can get the specialized tasks done with ease and efficiency.
- Innovative Teams
Employees when upskill become capable of innovations and coming up with unique ideas. Employers are most benefited when their employees collectively come up with ideas that help the organization stand apart from others in the market.
- Edge over Competitors
Having teams of highly talented and productive employees ensures that their organization has a competitive advantage in the industry which increases the overall production of the organization yielding better results in position and finances-wise. This is a major reason why upskilling is a win for employees and their companies.
- Teams ready to Take on Challenges
Upskilled employees are better at handling challenges as we have already established. This benefits organizations in a way that they can immediately create a task force of their top performers whenever the organization is facing a challenge so the evil is nipped in the bum before it causes serious damage.
- Reduced Turnover Intention
Considering employees are always on the lookout for better opportunities for growth, if they are getting that in their respective organizations, then there is no need for them to switch jobs. Employers that promote upskilling observe a significant decrease in employee turnover intention.
- Cost Effectiveness
When turnover intentions are lowered, employers can stop worrying about hunting and acquiring more talent. This significantly lowers the cost of continuous hiring processes helping the employer channel the same resources and finances into other areas such as employee development.
- Harmonious Workplace Culture
When employers offer equal chances and opportunities for learning, enhancement of skills, and growth, employees stop competing with each other and focus on their own growth which creates a good working environment for all.
- Result-Driven Force
Teams of highly productive employees aim at achieving results and are goal-driven since they know that's where success lies. Upskilling for employers is especially important because it ensures that the organizational goals are being met.
- Workforce Continuity Planning - Leaders in the Making
When employers offer opportunities for upskilling, they are also making sure that the organization is in good hands as leadership and management skills are also what employees learn while upskilling for their career paths. This allows the employers to find out if any employees are capable of leading the organization when needed.
- Adherence to Policies
As in this fast-paced world, market trends are continuously changing and evolving, it is important that employees are capable of adapting to the needs of the organization. Upskilling employees helps employers to promote adherence to policies that are ever-changing.
This is why and how upskilling is a win for both employees and their companies because it is a give-and-take relationship. Employers help employees learn skills, foster growth, and create flexibility to improve themselves as professionals. While employees in return bring capital, diversity, success, and innovation leading to their organizations becoming leading forces in their respective fields.
What's important now is if you are going to make a conscious effort to make the most of these learning opportunities given to you by your employers. If not, then you must be ready to take the initiative as it will only help you grow in the industry and see the heights of success that you have been dreaming of! Achieving that dream is not that difficult anymore as upskilling is your way forward!
