Data from Gartner also shows that less than half of employees (47%) are satisfied with the rate of career advancement in their organization and that only 37% of job openings have been filled via internal candidates. This points to a “significant need to improve the effectiveness of learning and development programs,” says Mok. Companies can’t expect to “hire themselves out of the skill shortage,” she says, and it’s clear that employees are eager for upskilling and reskilling opportunities to meet those skills gaps.
“It’s not about adding more tools to the toolbox. Focus more on what really matters to employees, candidates, and talent you want to attract and retain. Equip your managers with the tools and skills they need to tailor their career conversations with their staff to create more personalized experience. Invest in advanced tools, such as AI-enabled skills management and talent marketplace platform, etc., to help employees own their skills and career development journey. And adopt agile learning and build a continuous learning culture,” she says.
Developing strong internal training programs will be crucial moving forward as we see accelerated adoption of AI tools. With CIOs considered key players in setting workforce AI training agendas, it’s important to consider how these programs are developed to ensure you’re offering the right platforms and approaches for your employees, who appear eager to upskill on AI but want accessible, robust training programs to get there.
