You may wonder why it is important to foster a culture of learning in your company, when your employees can get the training they need outside office hours. And you’d be surprised to find out that building a culture of learning will help your business in many ways. Let’s find out how!
First, you probably experience the following problem: technological and social changes happen faster than you can adapt. And you find it hard to fill the skills gap that it creates. Besides, the workforce needs to prepare for the future of work either by upskilling, i.e., learning new competencies, or reskilling, i.e., learning new types of work.
Why Build a Culture of Learning
We live in a fast-changing world. And in the workplace, it means that some jobs already have, or will, become obsolete, while new ones crop up all the time, and everyone must keep up with the new technologies that impact their jobs. Upskilling and reskilling are the answers to these problems. And a culture of learning is needed to support the employees in this transition.
Besides, the skills gap is a threat to the growth of your business. It is not about a shortage of workers but a shortage of workers with the necessary skills to fill that gap, foster innovation, improve quality and productivity, as well as increasing the market share.
How to Foster a Culture of Learning
First, it is essential to align organizational needs and goals with those of your employees. This will be the basis for creating personalized learning plans. As a result, your employees will feel supported and engaged. Give your team the chance to learn what they need, when they need it, and in a format they feel comfortable with. Everyone has a different learning style and, ideally, each one should be catered for.
In order to keep up with the constant new technical developments, learning has to become a habit. Make it proactive instead of reactive, accessible, and meaningful. Create social learning opportunities as well, like learning events, online collaboration, or a mentorship program, to complement more formal training methods. Encourage people to share knowledge.
Rewards, whether soft like public recognition or hard, such as a bonus, can help support a culture of learning. Even virtual rewards, like badges on the LMS (Learning Management System) do the trick. It is worth nothing that 69% of employees would work harder if they received recognition.
How Does a Solid Learning Culture Benefit My Company?
When you provide your employees with learning opportunities, they feel supported and cared for, and that their development matters to the organization. This, in turn, drives engagement. According to a Udemy study, 80% of the respondents said that learning new skills would make them more engaged at work.
Also, a learning culture fights boredom, a big disengagement driver. And disengaged employees are twice as likely to leave their job, according to that study. Therefore, learning opportunities improve retention rates and even attract new talent.
Investing in learning opportunities leads to increased productivity and profitability. According to Bersin & Associates, an effective learning culture can result in a 37% increase in productivity. Happy employees get more done!
English Services Can Help You Build a Culture of Learning
If you would like to improve engagement and talent retention rates and upskill your team, give us a call. English Services provides blended language courses and workshops that can help your team communicate in another language and tap into international markets. Our classes are designed around projects that are meaningful to the students, using real material that not only teaches language structures and vocabulary, but also soft skills. Also, we apply elements of gamification and use rewards for successfully completed activities.
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