How is re-skilling and upskilling very important?

The COVID 19 pandemic has completely reshaped the way we think about work. It's not just about working remotely but improve our competency. The epidemic may have forced many people to rethink their current careers.

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced millions worldwide to work from home and push more education resources online. For those who are looking at upskilling themselves, this is an ideal opportunity to focus on skills.

It's no longer expected that one will stick to any one career path until they retire. It's common for people to have two or more different career paths during their working life. Some jobs may not come back; hence it's no harm in gaining additional skills to be able to face the post-pandemic world.

The McKinsey Global Institute estimated that as many as 375 million workers or 14 percent of the global workforce would have to switch occupations or acquire new skills by 2030 because of automation and artificial intelligence.

We are just as responsible for upskilling ourselves either through organizational training where we work or independent learning by proactively seeking out new skillsets and certifications.

You have to adopt an agile mindset that embraces change and uncertainty to create value in a hyper-connected, automated world. Your employability depends on agility and skill readiness for today and tomorrow's business demands.

Digital Transformation:

Whether you are a digital novice or relatively comfortable with technology, there cannot be a better time for you to dive deep into techniques, and upskilling can help in this digital transformation with the use of new technologies.

Ed-tech players and e-career companies have witnessed a jump in new registrations since the outbreak of the virus. As per the report, there has been a surge in enrollment for online courses over the last few weeks.

With the job market taking a fall and uncertainty, many individuals use extra time indoors to enhance their resume and career prospects. Whether you are looking to learn a new language or brush up on your IT skills, many online platforms have become widely available to support online learning and upskilling during the lockdown.

What are reskilling and upskilling?

The terminology of reskilling and upskilling might be synonymous with each other, but they imply a completely different meaning. The exact definitions of both according to Cambridge dictionary are:

Reskilling is learning new skills so you can do a different job or train people to do a different job.

From the definition above, we can say that reskilling focuses more on creating new skills so that an individual can do a different job.

Example: Swathi works in company ABC. She is the best Finance Manager and is good in the finance field. However, the company always changes its terms and regulations to enhance its global competitiveness in the worldwide market. Therefore, to stay competitive and employable, Swathi needs to take a different course on SAP Sales and Distribution (SD) to remain competitive with other talents. Therefore, Swathi takes an SAP(SD) course to compete with other SAP professionals.

Upskilling is the process of learning new skills or teaching employees new skills.

It focuses more on improving skills to work within the same job. Unlike reskilling, which requires to earn a completely new certification, upskilling will require an employee to enhance their value to his/her organization by improving their current skill set.

Example: Anita is a C/C++ programmer and is good at programming. Fortunately, the company she works at requires Embedded Engineer with the multimedia domain. As Anita hears the news, she starts to upskill her Multimedia domain knowledge to boost her value within the company. She, then, takes Embedded course to enhance her skill.

Available Sources for upskilling:

NASSCOM:

In partnership with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY), Nasscom launched an on-demand Artificial Intelligence (AI) courseware.

The courseware will be available under the Nasscom FutureSkills initiative and will allow individuals to upskill themselves.

NASSCOM FutureSkills has curated in-depth learning programs for its partner ecosystem, which will be available for free. https://futureskills.nasscom.in/

Simplilearn:

Simplilearn partner with companies and individuals to address their unique needs, providing training and coaching that helps working professionals achieve their career goals. https://www.simplilearn.com/

Coursera:

This platform offers a wide range of online courses from Universities or other educational establishments around the world. The classes are often free, allowing students to develop their knowledge, with a payable option to gain a certificate. https://www.coursera.org/

LinkedIn Learning:

This site offers a range of courses to help boost and enhance your resume. After completing the course, you will receive a certificate that can be displayed on your LinkedIn profile, allowing employers to acknowledge your new skill. LinkedIn Learning offers over 9,000 courses, taught by industry professionals and experts to help people develop their career aspirations. Courses range from business skills to software management to leadership skills, the site adds at least 25 courses per week, keeping up with current trends. The website uses personalized data to tailor the courses to support your specific career goals. https://www.dhirubhai.net/learning

Duolingo:

If you're looking to learn a new language, this is the platform for you. Duolingo offers bite-size courses in over 20 languages and is available through the language learning website or the mobile app. It is free for users, but also offers a paid premium service. https://www.duolingo.com

Google Digital Garage:

This provides a range of free digital skills, ranging from basic website functioning skills to data technology to marketing strategy. Google Digital garage allows you to learn at your own pace and even provides users with a certificate of completion to display on their Linkedin profiles or resume. https://learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalgarage

Hubspot Academy:

Take your professional skills to the next level with free online training from HubSpot Academy. From quick, practical courses to comprehensive certifications, learn everything you need to know about the most sought-after business skills. https://academy.hubspot.com/

Future Learn:

Learn 100% online with world-class universities and industry experts. Develop your career, learn a new skill, or pursue your hobbies with flexible online courses. https://www.futurelearn.com/

Udemy:

Udemy is the leading global marketplace for learning and instruction.

By connecting students all over the world to the best instructors, Udemy helps individuals reach their goals and pursue their dreams. They are the global marketplace for learning and teaching online where anyone can master new skills and achieve their goals. https://www.udemy.com/

 Skillshare:

Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes for creative and curious people, including illustration, design, photography, video, freelancing, and more. On Skillshare, millions of members come together to find inspiration and take the next step in their creative journey. https://www.skillshare.com/

Codeacademy:

If you are looking for free online coding classes, you can sign up on Codeacademy. An interactive online portal, Codeacademy offers courses in 12 different coding languages, including Java, Javascript, Python. The portal provides 180 hours of free content, and in case you want to access extra material, you can sign up for Codeacademy Pro. https://www.codecademy.com/

edX:

edX is the trusted platform for education and learning. Founded by Harvard and MIT, edX is home to more than 20 million learners, mostly top-ranked universities in the world and industry-leading companies. As a global nonprofit, edX is transforming traditional education, removing the barriers of cost, location, and access. https://www.edx.org/

Few more Sources:

Teachable - https://teachable.com/

Udacity - https://www.udacity.com/

SkillsBuild - https://skillsbuild.org/

W3 School - https://www.w3schools.com/

Which one matters more, upskilling or reskilling?

It will depend on your current need and choice.

As you know that upskilling is more about improving your current skill set, it means you will be a professional in your current position. You can focus on one goal, which is to improve yourself in the chosen expertise. On the other hand, when you decide to reskill your ability, you will have more opportunities to transition between jobs. Your chance of employability could be higher as you earn certification to different skills.

Finally, you need to be more active in social and professional media like LinkedIn, Facebook, GitHub, Stackoverflow, etc. and participate in various code hackathon test so that you will be highlighted in the job market.

Have you completed or in the midst of upskilling/reskilling?

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