It’s no secret that employee expectations are changing. People are demanding ever-more from their employers, with a particular focus on personal development, which of course falls to you in HR. Whether you’re new in a business or a veteran, you’re likely asking yourself one crucial question: how does our Learning and Development program measure up to other companies?
Offering a robust learning and development program is key to attracting and retaining the best talent, and staying attractive in a competitive job landscape. But where do you start? First, you need to understand what other companies in your space are offering, and understand how to match – or beat – them.
Here are 3 major L&D initiatives to keep you competitive in 2023.
Plugging skills gaps
‘Upskilling and reskilling’ are terms you’ll have heard a lot in the last 5 years. Skill gaps have ballooned worldwide with 87% of companies set to face this challenge in the near future. 1 billion people will need re-skilling by 2030 to keep pace with technological advances, calling for a “reskilling revolution”.
Giving your people the opportunity to upskill or reskill and future-proof their careers is a great way to stay competitive.
Ditch one-size-fits-all
If the latest shifts in learning patterns are anything to go by, one size fits only one.
In a world where we get personalized recommendations for what to watch on Netflix and customized news feeds on social media, it’s only natural that learning also moves in a similar direction. If we can use technology to make every other aspect of our lives more efficient, why not our learning? Learning personalized specifically for one’s interests and career goals is one of two main motivators for employees to learn.
People want learning and development that is relevant to their career and their goals. By offering this, you can easily stay ahead of your peers.
Create a culture of coaching
More than just the latest L&D buzzword, a coaching culture encourages and supports learning, growth, and development. Businesses with coaching cultures want their people to become the best version of themselves through ongoing feedback, healthy challenge, and support.
There are several ways businesses are leveraging coaching in 2023:
- Level 1: Using engagement surveys to understand what your people want and need. Investing in one off initiatives and training sessions. Encouraging mentoring from manager and senior peers. Running team building sessions. Acknowledging learning styles and creating space for neurodiverse colleagues.
- Level 2: All of the above, plus investing in specific ‘manager as coach’ training so your managers all adopt a coaching style with their teams.
- Level 3: Employing all of the above, and investing in external, professional coaches to enable everybody to reach their individual goals and unlock their full potential.
Embedding a coaching culture – especially a level 3 culture – is a deliberate strategic decision, and cannot happen by accident. It takes constant work and investment, but the rewards are huge.
Find out all about the latest L&D trends and start building a world-class strategy today.
