A guide to upskilling and training remote workers

It is necessary to invest in upskilling and training for a remote career in this ever-changing technological world. Upskilling and training bring together both dynamic learning and innovation with what the future of work needs. They help remote workers but also set them up for better job positions when they enter the current and future job markets. In addition, it enables remote business owners to deal with building skilled, flexible virtual workforces which are vital for accomplishing their very short-term and long-term business goals.

According to Global Human Capital Trends 2020 report:

• Due to the rapid changes brought about by AI and automation, about 375 million workers worldwide will need to acquire new abilities to perform the jobs that are now obsolete.
• Almost 60% of employees will need to be significantly upskilled and reskilled to find their worth in the future job market.
• 73% of business and HR leaders affirm that organizations are accountable for the development of their employees, while the latter should do it on their own (54%).
• As much as 65% of employees consider the employer-offered as the vital factor when considering a new job.
• 48% of American workers are willing to join a different profession if given the chance for skill training.

Thus, in the ultimate guideline on upskilling and training for remote career advancements, we will talk about the reasons why they are important as well as what methods and best practices to turn your team into a workforce with dynamic skills. But first, let’s discuss:

Why upskilling and training remote workers are essential in 2024 and beyond?

The trends show that if machines replace people in jobs, there will be a ten percent increase in unemployment within the span of the next fifteen years. The mastering of both upskilling and training in one’s professional field is fundamental in remote work, but there is a difference between both the terms. The perks of upskilling and training for remote workers are easy to see: thus, developing new skills and acquiring them not only enabled you to succeed in your recent role but also helped you become a candidate for some of the best-paying remote jobs. Indeed, you will get through the resume slag to be the right candidate for the virtual team, which makes your remote job maintainable. On the other hand, companies that invest in upskilling and training initiatives gain.

What is upskilling?

Upskilling is the process of improving existing abilities, learning new talents, or developing deeper expertise in a certain area. This might include training, retraining, and coaching to improve one’s skills or even specialize in a specific sector. It entails both improving existing skills and learning new ones in order to adapt to changing job roles and market needs. Employees can extend their horizons to undertake extra responsibilities and rise higher in the ranks in their remote careers. For example, upskilling may turn a beginner-line coder into an advanced-level developer who can code in many languages.

What is training?

Training remote employees means offering them the needed knowledge, tools, and resources that they require working remotely or from a virtual environment. This training can cover various aspects, including:

Remote collaboration tools: Showing employees how to use communication and collaboration tools from video conferencing (video conferencing platforms (e.g., Zoom, Microsoft Teams)) to project management (e.g., Trello, Asana) to messaging (e.g., Slack) is crucial for success in remote work.

Remote communication skills: Communication is the key to distant working systems. Training should cover the basics of written communication skills, as well as active listening, good communication skills, and cybernetics of remote meetings and discussions.

Cybersecurity awareness: Distant jobs will be needed to strengthen computer security awareness. Employees should receive instructions on how to secure their devices, detect “phishing” emails, and prevent divulging private information.

Adaptability and resilience: Working away from the office may result in a situation when one feels lonely, while the work-personal boundaries become less clear, and technical problems might arise. Training should address these difficulties and take into consideration the health of employees in the process.

Technical skills development: Remote workers might need training programs because they may have to learn the technical skills (that pertain to their roles). Maybe you need to learn about software competence, programming languages, or digital marketing tools.

Remote leadership and management: In the case of remote team leaders and managers, the training has to involve the aid of effective remote leadership tools, team building via remote platforms, continuous performance management, and remote team culture building.

Training of remote workers includes online courses, workshops, virtual seminars, self-paced learning modules, and also hands-on practice. It is critical for organizations to design upskilling programs based on the specific needs and issues of remote work and to provide continuing support and sources for the individuals’ growth as long as this work continues. 

Upskilling and training remote workers- Best practices and tips

Empowering your remote workers through upskilling and training requires a well-thought-out strategy. To facilitate their professional development effectively, follow these best practices:

Write out the SMART (Specific. Measurable. Achievable. Realistic. Time-bounded) Goals of your business and your employees here. Inform your team so that they know the strategic purpose of the company on which everyone should be focused. Consider, in advance, where the market is headed concerning the latest demand and requirements. Lead further and compile all the skills and competencies your employees need to reach these objectives. This forwards the direction for the analysis on the skills gap, and makes it more likely to enable a progressive approach to upskilling/reskilling. Similarly, you have also accompanied your employees and narrated their career goals and wish-lists.

Make sure you can settle on the key roles and skills required 

Determine the skills/competencies of employees in each position at your organization. Identify the key department heads and team leaders to have a clear picture of the skills that these positions entail, both current and future scenarios.Think of how technological capabilities may change your employment outlook in the next years and what will be expected of a workforce of the future. Analyze the qualifications required for these new positions and evaluate if your team can do good as expected. Create a broad list featuring all the skills and competencies that each position requires such as hard/technical skills, soft skills, specific industry knowledge, and respectively gained certificates.

Run a skill gap analysis 

Upon conducting a skills gap analysis, there will be a scenario in which the difference between the skills employees currently have and the skills they need to work productively and effectively toward the fulfillment of your organization’s goals will be explored. This distinct gap can be seen as those skills that are missing in your company.

• Assess if your workforce possesses the competencies to stay relevant within your industry in the years to come.
• Identify the duplicative positions, out of date, or fit the bill for the positions recently vacant.
• Facilitate your staff members’ career outlook with individualized reskilling and upskilling programs.

Assess and select the major skill gaps 

After you observe your skill gap analysis and employees’ skill evaluation, you have to decide which gaps have to be prioritized and worked on now. Split the skills gaps according to the impact they have on goals, and their relevance to the organizational objectives. The energy on primary departments with fatal flaws that may frustrate commercial expansion or be threats to projects’ success

Develop an upskilling and training strategic plan

Put your mind into your identified skill gaps and create a thorough training and development policy. Create a learning curriculum that not only tackles each field but also matches up with where each employee is in their career-wise goals. Employees need a specially designed horizon of personal upskilling/reskilling for their unique experience. This comprehensive solution to the knowledge retention problem should be inclusive of employees at different time zones and be adjustable to how people are likely to learn best.

Online classes and video lessons

Online learning platforms foster self-driven upskilling and training. Staff members can opt for topics crucial to their positions and delve into training at their convenience. 

Gamified learning techniques for upskilling

Gamification transforms learning into an exciting, enjoyable activity. Training is easily personalized for you. Examples of such techniques may be quizzes, games, leaderboards, and rewards that will elicit a positive attitude and stimulate the desire, motivation, and development among employees.

Virtual workshops, webinars, one-on-one technical sessions, panel discussions, etc

Invite experts and industry leaders categorized by specialization and purpose specifically for employee training. These subject matter experts within your organization or sector should be able to talk on a variety of subjects, including new viewpoints, industry trends, best practices, and specific talents.

On-the-job training and job rotation during the work

The latter has employees rotating among various roles or departments of the company. They can be a source of reinforcement to your crew on some concept or a way of illuminating the previously unknown aspects for someone else. This practice will enable employees to watch each other virtually through video meetings and learn the reality of particular operations.

Cross-functional project teams

Developing joint training programs, enriched by various jobs, embodies the skills that people learn from one another.

Mentoring programs for upskilling

Combine your experienced employees and the ones who are searching for a better development of a particular skill. This one-to-one training enables our trainees to share their knowledge and gives them good career guidance for growth and sustainability purposes.

Peer coaching

Create meetings or virtual forums where remote staff can inform, share their knowledge and learn from other members. This would imply encouraging teamwork among the learners and fostering a cooperative environment.

Create a future-proof remote team by joining our UNLEASH platform that is dedicated to your career development tomorrow!