Digital Workplace Enablement: How Training Bridges the Technology and Skills Gap

Embracing digital transformation has become necessary for organizations striving to stay competitive and resilient in today’s ever-changing business landscape.

However, a new challenge has emerged amid this fast-paced revolution – the formidable skills gap. As technology continues to evolve, so do the skills and knowledge required to keep up with it.

To bridge the gap and truly achieve digital workplace enablement, it’s critical to invest in employee upskilling and reskilling.

The Growing Gap Between Technology and Skills

According to LinkedIn, 89% of learning and development (L&D) professionals agree that proactively implementing upskilling and reskilling efforts will help organizations navigate the future of work and retain top talent. The same research found that business leaders make this happen by providing learning opportunities to help employees develop new skills.

Specifically for digital transformation, organizations need to uplevel employee skills fast. Gartner found that more than half of L&D executives agree that skill gaps are growing because of the digital shifts brought about by workplace modernization.

The same research also discovered that:

• 19% of employee skills will be irrelevant in three years
• 39% of employees agree that today’s skills are evolving
• 34% of employees learned a new-to-world skill in the past three years

Modernizing the workplace requires more than just adopting new tools and technologies. It requires a workforce that possesses digital dexterity, meaning they have the ability to use digital tools and resources effectively.

That’s why workforce training is critical to ensuring digital workplace enablement success.

Discover the 3 major roadblocks to digital workplace enablement success in our free eBook:

The Benefits of Workforce Training in Digital Workplace Adoption

Below are three key examples of how workforce training supports digital workplace enablement efforts:

1. Training minimizes negative impact.

Changes in how users work may lead to business disruptions and work practice adjustments. With new systems to explore, the lack of digital skills may hamper digital workplace adoption.

For example, with evolving cloud threats, it can be easy for malicious attackers to target new or unprotected cloud users. Or, more simply, users may be practicing data-sharing habits that result in unwanted data exposure. If your employees aren’t prepared – or at the very least aware – against these threats in your new digital workspace, your whole organization may be at risk.

With training, you can help users develop best practices and skills – like cybersecurity measures for the above example – that help them better adapt to the new work landscape and ultimately support your modern workplace’s sustainable growth.

2. Users adopt new technologies better and become successful when supported with the right tools and knowledge.

Training reduces friction and allows users to be more familiar with the new ways of working – how to use what and which functions would work best for their tasks. This helps your workforce get better acquainted with the tools they need for their job and adopt improved processes from your digital platforms.

You could take it one step further and train the workforce in more citizen development tools and capabilities that help revolutionize your organization’s cloud potential.

3. Effective training promotes a change-driven culture that builds a “future-proof” workplace.

Lastly, training helps cultivate a change-driven culture that looks at technology as an aid for elevating capabilities rather than a threat to your workforce’s skills.

Providing the necessary training and resources to adapt to new technologies helps employees become comfortable with change. Employees then develop a growth mindset open to learning, sharing ideas, expanding their skills, and working together to solve modern challenges.

As businesses face the demands of a rapidly evolving digital landscape, workplace training is critical to building a workforce that is up to date with the latest skills and technologies necessary to drive success. But the next question is: Are you prepared to implement effective workplace training programs?

Train Everyone Right Where They Work

Delivering effective and efficient training to a large workforce can be challenging. Traditional training methods can be time-consuming, costly, and unscalable.

From the perspective of the IT team, it’s simply impossible to personally train thousands of employees, even if done in groups or cohorts.

And to make matters worse, training can feel like an unnecessary burden to employees who are focused on their productivity. They want to meet their KPIs and eliminate as much distraction as possible. Forcing employees to attend a day-long orientation – when they could be working – may not be the most encouraging method of upskilling them.

That’s why it’s critical to choose a learning delivery system that’s scalable and non-disruptive.

For example, you can choose to deliver training for your digital workplace via Teams because employees are already there. By pushing skills directly where users are working, you’re able to reduce friction and distraction, increasing training success.

Here are other recommendations to deliver better training for your digital workplace enablement.

• Personalize the training experience. Create customized training modules that target specific employee needs. By providing personalized training, employees can learn at their own pace, focus on areas where they need to improve, and track their progress. This leads to a more engaged workforce and higher training completion rates.
• Choose immersive training modules. Leverage multimedia tools such as videos, simulations, and interactive assessments that can make training more engaging and interactive. This can help employees better retain and apply information to their work more effectively.

Get Your Workforce Ready for Your Digital Workplace with AvePoint

With a future-proof skill set, employees are better equipped to handle the challenges and complexities of the modern business landscape. This ultimately empowers organizations to stay ahead of the curve and become digital leaders in their respective industries.

However, ensuring the success of your digital transformation goes beyond offering training. You must be ready to implement your workplace modernization strategy from migration to adoption successfully.

Want to learn more? Here’s where you can start. Explore AvePoint’s Digital Workplace Enablement solutions.