Upskilling should be a priority for ICT businesses

29 March, 2023

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Digital transformation is vital in order to keep ahead of your competitors, but it’s wise to remember, that your plans should first focus on the human factor.

Our modern, digital world changes fast. Technology moves at a rapid pace. It brings innovation into our lives and can transform our businesses. Machine learning and AI technologies enable time-saving automation and give us incredibly valuable insights into our data. However, to make best use of all these new concepts, you and your staff need to understand them. Just like getting a new mobile phone, there are new features and capabilities that will remain unused if you don’t have the right knowledge, and you won’t get the most out of your new gadget. Likewise, you can install the most sophisticated systems, but without ensuring your employees have the skills, and the confidence to use the systems to their full potential, you could well be missing out. Digital transformation is vital in order to keep ahead of your competitors, but it’s wise to remember, that your plans for this evolution should always focus strongly on the human factor.

The benefits of upskilling in the digital arena 

With a program of constant upskilling, your staff will have the ability to quickly adapt to new software and systems. They will have the confidence to try new things without the resistance that change can often be present in staff members that are set in their ways and are not encouraged to upskill.  

By offering training and increasing your employee’s skills, you’re boosting confidence and morale. People feel valued when they’re given a chance to grow. It will help them in their career, and it will help to increase their productivity.  

In addition, offering ongoing development is valuable, and having such a process in place could make all the difference when it comes to hiring. You’re likely to get more applicants, and higher quality applications for positions when you’re offering further training and development opportunities.  

With an ongoing programme of staff development, retention levels rise. Employees are less likely to look for another position if they feel they are valued and have the chance to grow and develop within their current employment.  

As a business, you’ll get the most out of your staff when you invest in their development. Productivity, performance, and morale are all improved when employees are highly trained. You’ll also be able to spot skills gaps within your company and ensure that these gaps are filled by tailored training. Keeping your employee skill levels up will help to avoid the time-consuming and costly process of hiring more staff with different skill sets.  

Finding skilled ICT talent is increasingly difficult  

In a recent article, Tereza Demetriou, People & Culture Manager at NetU Group reported on the global issues faced by ICT hiring managers. She states “As per DESI (2022) 55% of EU businesses in 2020 reported difficulties in filling technology related vacancies and it has now become more difficult”. Tereza goes on to highlight the fact that there are now more jobs in ICT, but fewer people to fill them.  

So with this in mind, it makes perfect sense to upskill your employees, helping them to grow and develop, so they have the necessary skills to take on the IT challenges and embrace digital developments in the future. We never quite know where the digital world will take us next, but we need to be ready for it in order to move forward and not fall behind.   

Find out more about your digital transformation opportunities 

NetU Group provides world-class IT solutions to companies across the region. With more than 30 years of expertise and experience, we’re here to help businesses move forward, integrating processes seamlessly with the latest technology. If you’d like to find out more about our services, and how we can help your business move forward, please visit our website and get in touch today.   

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