How to Upskill Your Employees, and Why You Should

When employees are pondering taking a position at a new company, they’re weighing a few considerations.

There’s salary, of course, and the particulars of the benefits. Beyond that, though, they may be looking at a company’s trajectory and what it values. Is this a place that’s growing, they may wonder, and investing in employees like me to grow with it?

“Employees are looking for organizations that have a sense of growth,” says Babson College’s Jessica Burkland, an assistant professor of practice in organizational behavior and management. “They want to be invested in by the organization.”

That investment is critical. When companies commit to training or upskilling workers, they send a clear message to current and potential employees. “It provides a pretty good signal that we care, that we want to invest, that we value a growth mindset,” Burkland says.

Burkland is the owner of Activate Consulting and Training, which works with mid-sized companies to create training programs for employees and managers. “Helping organizations help their employees grow is appealing to me,” she says.

In her work, she has seen the benefits of upskilling, how it can improve morale, serve as a talent retention strategy, and give workers a higher sense of purpose. “Now so, more than in the past, I think people are motivated by jobs that give them a sense of purpose,” Burkland says.

For those companies seeking the benefits of upskilling, Burkland offers a few key thoughts to keep in mind.

Training Vs. Upskilling

When considering an upskilling strategy, companies need to distinguish between a few basic concepts: training, upskilling, and reskilling. Any kind of employee learning falls under the broad bucket of training, but upskilling and reskilling have more specialized meanings.

Upskilling should feel meaningful, not obligatory, says Babson’s Jessica Burkland.

Reskilling typically refers to the acquisition of new skills, ones that can mark a pivot to another career or industry altogether, while upskilling involves knowledge gained to become more relevant or skilled in an employee’s current field.

Burkland likes to use the metaphor of a ladder to differentiate between upskilling and reskilling. In reskilling, employees are creating a new career ladder for themselves, a ladder that leads up to a new destination with a new set of goals. In upskilling, employees are keeping the same career ladder but are looking to climb higher.

As technology continually shifts and advances, the need for upskilling workers will only increase, Burkland says. Companies need employees with the skills to roll with those changes. “Organizations need to be more agile,” she says. “They need to be more nimble.”

How to Upskill Employees?

To upskill your employees is not simply a matter of having them occasionally watch a video and then take an online quiz. Your upskilling strategy should be intentional, consistent, and actually helpful to an employee. Keep in mind three crucial steps:

Employees need to be given the time to upskill.

When upskilling the workforce, companies should widely publicize those efforts throughout an organization.

Upskilling must complement an employee’s job and career.

“People need to see how it connects to their growth,” Burkland says. “We don’t want employees to feel like we are checking a box.” Obligatory, time-consuming training that’s not meaningful can make employees feel resentful. “They feel like it’s taking away from their day and what they need to get done,” she says.

In terms of publicizing, companies should make any upskilling initiatives as visible as possible. “That’s another piece I see organizations forget to do,” Burkland says.

When an employee conducts upskilling, that needs to be called out in the organization and recognized by supervisors and the larger team. “That signals that upskilling is important,” Burkland says. With that visibility, the employee’s new skill is not missed by others. They know they can call upon that employee for assistance or training.

How Do I Start Upskilling with a Full-Time Job?

The short answer to that question is time. To upskill properly, employers need to give their employees the time and support to do it. Already, many workers feel overwhelmed in their responsibilities, Burkland says. A company can’t simply pile on required trainings to their already heaping workloads.

“It’ll feel less like an opportunity than an obligation,” Burkland says. “You’re asking for them to burn out.”

Giving employees that time may be a commitment, but companies need to remember the benefits of upskilling. “I am giving this time now because in the future I know my employees will be more efficient and effective,” Burkland says. “They will be able to keep up with rapid changes that are happening.”

“Employees are looking for organizations that have a sense of growth. They want to be invested in by the organization.”
Jessica Burkland, an assistant professor of practice in organizational behavior and management

If a company’s upskilling strategy is lacking and doesn’t give employees the support they need, Burkland recommends that they take matters into their own hands. Enroll in an MBA program, or if that’s not possible, sign up for flexible certificate programs or professional development courses, such as those that Babson offers in entrepreneurship, leadership, or artificial intelligence.

Whatever employees ultimately learn outside their workplace, they should bring it inside the workplace, using it in their jobs. That will show their company, as well as future employers, how they want to grow in their careers. “It signals to employers that you are willing to learn,” she says.

What Are Some Simple Ideas to Improve Morale?

Upskilling is an effective way to improve morale. When an organization invests in upskilling the workforce, it builds commitment, bonds teams together, creates a sense of accomplishment, and fosters good will toward an organization.

“It shows the organization cares about individual contributors,” Burkland says. “It cares not just about the profit to be made.”

To upskill your employees instills a sense of purpose. “This is really what motivates us—having a sense of purpose, feeling a sense of growth,” Burkland says. “It’s not just a job. It has meaning. I can grow and grow my competencies.”

Considering all the feelings of growth and purpose upskilling invokes, any employee retention strategies need to include it. “If people see they’re not growing, that’s a No. 1 driver to leave,” Burkland says.

Some organizations may fear, wrongly, that upskilling may hurt their employee retention efforts. Invest in someone, their thinking goes, and that person will take their newly marketable skills somewhere else.

Burkland says this isn’t the right way to think about employee retention. “If you invest in someone, that person might leave,” she says. “But not investing is almost guaranteeing they will.”

LOOKING TO UPSKILL? Learn more about Professional and Executive Education at Babson. Among the College’s offerings are certificate programs and professional development courses.