IBM: Millions of workers need training, but less than half of employers have resources to do so

Dive Brief:

Some 120 million workers worldwide may need retraining or reskilling in the next few years, but only 41% of 5,670 global executives in a new poll said they have the people and resources needed to carry out this development strategy and their other business initiatives, according to a new IBM Institute for Business Value (IBV) study. Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation are driving the skills development need, said IBV.
The IBV study, "The Enterprise Guide to Closing the Skills Gap," offers steps organizations can take to close the skills gap and attract talent, including reskilling the workforce through development strategies that are personalized, based on multiple modules and built on data. The report also recommended that employers use analytics and AI to identify what skills are available in all areas of an organization and openly share the information with workers to create a culture of ongoing learning.
To address these challenges, IBM said it has partnered with the Josh Bersin Academy to launch a new program, HR in the Age of AI. According to IBM, the program centers on how HR professionals can use AI to convert the way they work within the HR function and throughout their organizations.

Dive Insight:

HR professionals may have no choice but to invest in training if they want to move their organizations forward.

In a study released in January, CEOs reported being highly concerned about the scarcity of much-needed skills. PwC's 22nd Annual Global CEO Survey showed that the skills gap topped the agenda of company heads, 55% of whom admitted that their organizations weren't able to meet the demand effectively. More than half the executives cited the skills gap as the cause of an unusually high rise in staffing costs, with many saying the shortage also impacted their customer experience.

HR professionals may have no choice but to invest in training to upskill or reskill their employees if they want to move their organizations forward to meet the needs of the evolving workplace. HR can create a culture of learning to achieve the level of training and development needed to transform the workplace.

Learning and development can be taxing for employees, however. To help workers avoid training burnout, organizations should create content that suits workers' professional and personal schedules, EY Americas Chief Learning Officer Tal Goldhamer previously told HR Dive. "But, most importantly, learning and development programs need to give people real-time upskilling opportunities and results, which they can quickly apply within their short- and long-term career journeys," Goldhamer said.