Discover How Online Content Marketplaces Can Help Skill The Remote Workforce
Today, almost every business across the planet has been forced to adopt remote working, and there are whispers in trade circles that this might remain the case well beyond the COVID-19 crisis. With the odds of remote working becoming a mainstay of the corporate world, it is a clear indication of the rate at which technology is advancing and employees’ preference for remote working opportunities.
And, the trend has only grown stronger over the past few months, largely due to the deadly pandemic sweeping across the world. But, pandemic or not, before COVID-19 even reached the shores of US, over 5% of the country’s employees were already telecommuting for the most part, and 43% enjoyed work-from-home at least some times [1]; which is to say that remote work is not some forced trend, but the most likely scenario of where the world of work is headed in the near future.
Running almost parallel to this trend in another worrying one, that of the rising skills gap across global industries. Today, almost every industry on the planet is facing skills gap challenges in one way or another, and employee skills development is no longer a luxury, but rather an urgent necessity. Given that there is no outrunning technological and workplace disruptions, highly-skilled and talented labor is the ultimate driving force behind every business’s growth and success.
L&D For The Remote Employee
The ever-widening skills gap across global industries is most certainly the most urgent challenge facing businesses today. Technological advancements have suddenly given the impetus on digital literacy, making technical, digital and IT skills one of the most in-demand skills in the world; this on the back of an unemployment rate that is the lowest in 5 decades [2].
However, when it comes to training a remote workforce, significant attention needs to be given to relevant skills, ones that would help improve performance and productivity, which is often easier said than done. Given that the remote working trend is here to stay, the need to provide critical skilling to the workforce is paramount. It' no wonder why there has been a significant dip in training cost for logistic, facilities, and personnel (from $44.5 billion to $29.6 billion [3]), as online learning, including innovative learning technology solutions and content marketplaces, enable anywhere, anytime learning to avoid incurring such costs.
Addressing skills gap challenges and reinventing employee skilling programs to accommodate industry demands have now become critical, and there is an urgent need for businesses to adopt scalable and sustainable skilling programs to incorporate the latest trends and best practices, including online content marketplaces.
Role Of Online Content Marketplaces
With global markets getting more and more competitive by the day, it has become imperative for businesses to providing the right skilling opportunities to their employees on some of the most critical skills to help the businesses stand out from the rest and achieve a competitive advantage.
Global organizations are increasingly moving their IT and processes to the cloud, and it only makes sense for the employees themselves to adopt a similar transition. It is clearly evident that the most critical issue for businesses today is ensuring continued growth in the face of changing trends and constant disruptions. And, this calls for the continuous reskilling and upskilling of the workforce.
L&D practitioners often struggle for a choice when it comes to choosing custom-developed learning content or off-the-shelf courses. While there are several pros for using both the options, with off-the-shelf learning, L&D pros have the flexibility to achieve a quick project roll-out of the eLearning programs and also open up a whole world of learning resources in a single click.
Today’s leading content marketplaces, like LinkedIn Learning, GO1, Plethora Learning, and more, are modern online content libraries that offer a wide range of course collections, covering topics that are in-demand today and critical for the employees to work efficiently in a remote environment. L&D pros can choose an online content marketplace over custom eLearning in cases where they are short of time and resources and need immediate action. With a content marketplace, L&D is empowered with limitless learning resources that are not only effective for first-time eLearning projects but also fit in well with existing programs as skill add-ons.
Online content marketplaces can help L&D practitioners easily find the relevant courses and videos they are looking for, without spending time and resources on dealing with the subject matter expertise, mobile compatibility, course design, and other prerequisites.
Below are some of the hottest skills L&D pros can offer their remote workforce in 2020 and beyond.
Top Soft Skills for 2020
Analysis of the top in-demand soft skills at work in 2020 revealed an uptake in topics such as communication, creativity, innovation, and growth mindset. While continuous employee skilling is the need of the hour, L&D must also focus on driving home the need for a learning culture. Soft skills, like creative problem-solving, emotional intelligence, and agility have taken a top spot across multiple enterprises, citing a lack of behavioral skillset among the workforce; while skills like innovation, change management, and communication are some skills that top the list of priorities.
Takeaway
While not everyone has the kind of resources and budget to implement a comprehensive remote working and skilling strategy, especially with the limited flexibility during disruptive times, there are several budget-friendly content marketplaces available in the market today. Content libraries, like Plethora, BizLibrary, LinkedIn Learning, and Skillsoft, etc., are some of the most comprehensive platforms that offer tremendous value to the employees. However, the key is to ensure relevancy and learning outcomes.
References:
[1] America's Coming Workplace: Home Alone
