Learning and Development: Upskilling vs. Reskilling

Staff and leadership development are two of the greatest investments you can make. When you invest in your employees, you’re supporting them in reaching their full potential. Sometimes employees only require training that expands on their existing skills — this is known as “upskilling.” Sometimes employees must acquire new skills to excel in their roles — this is known as “reskilling.” Floro Business Strategies explains the key differences between upskilling vs. reskilling:

Upskilling

Upskilling allows employees to expand on their existing skills and grow in their field of expertise so they may be more productive and efficient or advance in their roles.

Often, upskilling is necessary when there are major changes in the marketplace. For instance, if there are services in high demand within an industry, organizations may push to offer these new services, which would require their employees to be trained to perform functions relevant to these new offers.

Upskilling takes employees with a solid foundation and refines their skills so they can perform better in their existing roles.

Reskilling 

Reskilling allows employees to pivot and learn new skills unrelated to their areas of focus. Often, reskilling puts an employee on an entirely new path within their organization.

As the marketplace evolves, so does technology. New technologies, like automation, have revolutionized the way organizations do business. Automation has eliminated roles across all industries, as organizations no longer have to invest in people to perform these functions. For employees impacted by these shifts, reskilling allows them to pivot and learn new skills that make them valuable in the ever-changing marketplace. 

Is your productivity low and communication lacking? Feeling like your day-to-day functions aren’t in alignment with your long-term goals? It may be time for your teams to brush up on their skills. Before you can develop your teams, you must develop your leaders. Schedule a consultation with one of our professionals to discuss the importance of executive coaching!

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