Workplace wellbeing is a significant challenge facing American employers. One in five Americans suffer from a mental illness, ranging from mild to severe, and those numbers are only increasing as a result of a dwindling economy, rising living costs, and unemployment, a constant looming threat.
In this article, we will discuss the ways in which upskilling can drastically improve workplace wellbeing.
Wellbeing in the workplace and the transformative effect of upskilling
With so many Americans struggling with their mental health, it’s not uncommon for work organizations to experience high staff turnovers, rising numbers of sick days, reduced staff productivity, and unhealthy work cultures.
Staff training, development, and career progression have a big impact on employee wellness and mental health. When individuals feel supported in their job roles, able to progress, and trained to do their jobs properly, they tend to feel happier and healthier, and they enjoy a higher level of well-being.
The benefits of upskilling employees
Here are the five main benefits of upskilling employees and why you should invest in your staff.
1. Upskilling can increase confidence and help employees perform their roles better
Employees who have clear direction at work, goals to work towards, and opportunities for upskilling are more satisfied and confident in their job roles. As a result, they tend to stick around for longer (which can only mean good things for your company).
According to CNBC, “Factors like clear expectations and a manager invested in employee development support higher levels of employee engagement for all generations of workers […] All jobs have challenges and aspects of work that are not always fun – but a key is to leverage the strengths of each person so that they can do what they do best and bring the best results for the organization.”
By upskilling your employees, you leverage the abilities they already have and magnify them, helping your employees do their jobs to the highest possible standard.
When employees are supported to progress in this way, they are much happier at work. Their well-being is positively affected, as they feel valued and able to contribute to the company as a whole.
2. Upskilling introduces new skills to your team
The great thing about upskilling is that it expands individuals’ knowledge on particular topics and therefore extends their skillsets. This equips people with the skills they need to excel in their job roles, provide quality customer service, and progress in their careers.
What’s more, upskilling tends to give people a hunger for knowledge and the more they learn, the more motivated they become to learn more. It’s what develops leaders in your workforce and it is often the driving force behind self-learning and continued study in later life.
If you’re a creative agency looking to keep your team motivated and engaged (whilst increasing revenue), introducing a new line of complementary products to clients (such as app development, reseller hosting, and digital marketing) can open doors to new skills needing to be developed internally. Let’s take a closer look at these three additional offerings that can help upskill within your workforce:
App development can offer your team the opportunity to develop technical skills such as:
- Programming languages
- User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX) design
- Project management
- Problem-solving via debugging and testing
Reseller hosting can offer your team a chance to develop their skills in business management, sales, and marketing including:
- Cybersecurity best practices
- Project management
- Customer support
- Upselling and cross-selling
Digital marketing offers upskilling opportunities in:
- Data analysis via website analytics and campaign tracking
- Social media management
- Community management
- Campaign planning and execution
By introducing complementary services, your team will not only stay motivated and engaged through continuous learning and skill development, but your business will benefit from providing a broader range of services to your clients, ultimately increasing your revenue and market presence.
3. Upskilling can reduce work-related stress and anxiety
Employee engagement is on the rise. However, employee stress levels are at record-high levels. As Gallup explains, “In the U.S. and Canada, employee stress is even higher, with 52% of employees reporting they experienced a lot of stress the previous day. This trend holds implications for peoples’ wellbeing at work and home, as well as their productivity and longevity.”
Upskilling provides a solution. It allows for employees to learn and train on the job (they can even complete training from their mobile phone). This allows them to learn more about their role, uncover new skills, and get equipped with the knowledge they need to do their job better.
Organizations offering upskilling as part of employee development are finding that work-related stress and anxiety are reduced as a result. This is because employees are given the tools they need to do their job and do it well.
4. Learning new things limits job role stagnation
One of the great things about learning new things and providing upskilling opportunities within your company is that it limits professional stagnation. According to Newsweek, the business cycle “has seen some of the lowest rates of worker productivity since the BLS began recording data, signaling a lingering sense of stagnation in the U.S. labor market.”
Upskilling encourages people to step out of their comfort zones and learn something new. For those who have grown stagnant in their roles (due to lack of growth opportunities), this is especially important as stagnation means bored, disengaged employees. This lack of stimulation can only lead to feelings of resentment and demotivation that have an overall negative impact on well-being and mental health.
When companies offer upskilling opportunities, they give employees the chance to learn new things and expand their knowledge. This increases confidence, boosts engagement at work, and provides many people with a renewed sense of purpose and motivation in their job roles. It is an invaluable investment.
5. Continuous learning encourages adaptability
The world around us is constantly changing. Technologies and work processes are evolving constantly. Upskilling gives employees the tools they need to adapt and stay resilient in changeable environments.
This is especially important in today’s digital age. Many organizations are introducing artificial intelligence (AI) and automation, among other things, in order to support people in their job roles. However, without the proper training, it is easy for individuals to fall behind in their technological understanding. This can leave people feeling incapable, ill-equipped, and in threat of losing their jobs in the future.
Upskilling ensures your employees remain up-to-date in their knowledge so they can ride the wave of technological changes with confidence. It also ensures employees are able to confidently navigate any changes within the company itself. This reduces the need to invest in new staff members, keeping turnover and business costs low.
Looking to the future
As you can see, upskilling is a powerful way to improve workplace well-being and equip your employees for whatever the future may bring.
By providing employees with the opportunity to learn new things and develop their skills, you can reduce work-related stress, increase employee confidence, and provide a sense of career direction and purpose.
This has overwhelmingly positive impacts on mental health and well-being, helping increase staff productivity, satisfy employees in their job roles, and help business profits rise.
Upskilling is certainly a worthwhile investment for any company keen to support employee development and long-term business success.
