Rapid changes across businesses and industries has created a widening workforce readiness gap, leaving employers without the talent and skills sets they need to drive revenue and remain competitive in their markets. Recognizing this gap, many employers are investing in upskilling and reskilling initiatives. However, pinpointing the most effective strategies to close this gap is not straightforward.

Many employers use a variety of strategies to develop workforce readiness across their companies, including internal and external partnerships, vocational training, professional certifications, apprenticeships, online courses, mentorship, job rotation and collaborative projects with educational institutions. Yet, these one-size-fits-all learning and development (L&D) offerings do not always consider the unique needs of specific organizations and industries, and more importantly, they often overlook the different ways each employee learns and grows.

A tailored approach to L&D is essential, particularly for enterprise organizations aiming to invest in diverse skills across departments and functions. With the emergence of new AI advancements, companies have the opportunity to utilize AI in training efforts. AI-powered development programs can intelligently connect employees with personalized learning opportunities, enhancing the employee experience and helping to close the workforce readiness gap.

The Workforce Readiness Gap: Key Challenges

The pace of change within the workforce is not linear and as new technologies, changing job requirements and economic uncertainties continue to reshape the modern workplace, employers need to adapt. There are three primary problems they must address:

1. Skills: The rapid adoption of AI across industries has redefined job roles and expectations leading to the gradual depreciation of employees’ current skills.
2. Expectations: Employees expect their leadership to offer effective development opportunities and without them, they are likely to leave the organization.
3. Visibility: To successfully address the workforce readiness gap, employers need insights into employees’ current skills and where skills need to be developed. This workforce data will help managers make strategic talent decisions.

Workforce readiness is not a new term, however today it does require broadening the scope of what it means. A workforce ready individual continuously builds the skills they need for now and the future, and it means employers can have the data they need to meet the expectations of their workforce.  Workforce readiness considers not just your direct employees but all your labor resources, including gig workers, contractors and partners.

Using AI to Personalize Employee Training and Development

While AI is a key factor driving rapid change in the workforce, it can also be the solution to addressing these main pain points. AI can identify areas for skills improvement, develop personalized training programs specific to individual employees and provide workforce data and key insights.

Understanding the potential of the people within an organization is critical to creating an environment for employees to learn, grow and feel supported. But this does not just happen organically. Research shows that high performing companies are proactive and adapt to the new ways people learn today. While it may be difficult to deviate from the one-size-fits-all model of trainings, without that investment, companies are often ineffective in meeting the needs of employees and are unable to provide employers with the insights they need to tailor development programs.

As employee engagement dips, fostering a work environment with abundant growth becomes crucial for sustainable business success.  According to a recent Gallup survey, in the first quarter of 2024, engagement dropped three percentage points to 30% among full- and part-time employees, which is the lowest rate reported since 2013.  Think about that for a minute, each percentage point gain or drop in engagement represents approximately 1.6 million full- or part-time employees in the U.S.

AI can revolutionize employee development by pinpointing skills gaps and personalizing upskilling opportunities. By analyzing vast amounts of data, AI identifies employees’ strengths and aligns them with company needs. This not only can empower organizations to craft a better skills strategy, but also foster individual engagement by offering employees actionable insights for their unique growth paths. By implementing a personalized course of learning for employees, leaders help to make them feel more valued within the company which can boost employee retention, give employees more control over their careers, gain the skills needed to excel in their roles and improve their productivity.

Workforce Agility and AI Skilling:  A Multifaceted Approach

AI-powered skilling identifies skills gaps within a company and personalizes learning paths for employees. This data-driven approach equips employees with the right skills to excel in their roles and generate evergreen insights for the employer.

As the skills landscape and business requirements continue to evolve, there is a renewed focus on prioritizing agile workforces. Workforce agility is the capacity the workforce has to effectively respond and adapt to change. It is defined and measured by proactively anticipating and identifying change-related issues while adapting to a variable, ever-changing environment.

Upskilling employees is not just about working to narrow the workforce readiness gap, but also developing an agile workforce that can continue to adapt to inevitable changes of the future. Considering that 39% of employees do not think their employers can adapt to changing conditions, there’s a need for companies to invest in programs and training that can prove otherwise.

Creating an enriching and effective environment to promote workforce agility starts with upskilling and reskilling employees. Employers can cultivate a future-ready workforce by combining established methods like hands-on learning, observation, feedback and stretch assignments with personalized learning paths. This comprehensive approach equips employees with the skills they need to flourish within the company and navigate the broader workforce.

Key Benefits of Effective Upskilling — In The Age of AI

Using AI to engage employees with improved learning and development can help close the skills gap and foster growth within an organization, driving measurable impacts on not only individual employees, but also the business as a whole. Some key benefits include:

1. Boosting employee retention: With the rising costs of attracting, recruiting and onboarding talent, retention has become even more critical. Implementing a workforce readiness and agility strategy using AI can help create a sense of value and purpose for employees, making them more likely to stay. By building internal talent through tailored development programs, buying expertise through strategic hires, and renting skills via flexible, temporary arrangements, organizations can match employee skills with business needs. This approach not only supports career growth and internal promotion opportunities but also ensures employees feel optimistic about their future within the organization.
2. Increasing revenue and productivity while reducing risk: Tailoring learning and development programs to meet the specific skills needs of a company and individual increases productivity and accelerates innovation — helping to go to market with products and services faster. Proper training also mitigates business risks such as compliance requirements, information technology (IT) security best practices and safety practices, that could be detrimental to the business if mismanaged.
3. Building customer retention and satisfaction: An adaptable, motivated and experienced workforce directly translates to higher-quality services and products. A better prepared employee delivers superior customer outcomes through increased knowledge, confident problem-solving, great communication skills and efficiency.

With unemployment at its lowest in over 50 years, employees have considerable influence over their careers and tend to favor companies that prioritize their personal growth and development. Meanwhile, employers must invest in skill development initiatives to stay competitive in a market that is rapidly evolving due to the surge of AI technologies. By using that same AI toolset to create tailored training strategies, businesses can bridge the workforce readiness gap and involve employees in their professional development, thereby boosting innovation and profitability.