One hidden consequence of the rapid evolution of technology is that the skills an employee possessed when they were hired do not remain relevant for long. Or, as a new Workforce magazine article puts it, “chances are within a few years those skills will be obsolete.”
To keep their employees’ skills fresh, companies today are investing in “reskilling” workers as a form of talent management, giving them training on new capabilities relevant to their job as it develops. Cielo’s Tara Cassady, Senior Vice President, is interviewed in the article and talks about the type of employees companies should be looking for to fully capitalize on the benefits of reskilling.
From the article:
This new approach to recruiting could make it easier for companies to look further afield for candidates who show an aptitude and interest in learning, even if they don’t follow a traditional academic or career path, said Tara Cassady, senior vice president at Cielo, a global recruitment process outsourcing provider in Milwaukee. “You want people who are curious, have an aptitude to troubleshoot, and who use technology to solve problems,” she said. These lifelong learners could just as easily come from tech schools, boot camps and online universities as from traditional college campuses.
Once they do find or retain these candidates, they are also investing more effort into retaining them, she said. From ensuring that interns have a clear path to employment, to making sure newly trained talent are given new assignments and competitive salaries, engagement and retention must be part of the reskilling trend, she said. “If you are going to invest in training talent, you don’t want to lose them to a competing firm.”
Visit Workforce magazine to read the entire article, “Reskilling: The New Trend in Recruiting.”
