Press delete on Soft Skills - Welcome Power Skills!

Even in times of COVID, these are the skills that go way beyond technical, subject specific skills. These are the skills that have the power to transform culture and make the difference between a successful strategic deployment and mediocrity. And yes, they are trainable.

To quote Josh Bersin: “Bottom line is simple. We need to take those power skills seriously and build experiential programs that start at the top”

Not only are these skills trainable – this can be achieved at scale. The days of sending a few people on ad-hoc communication skills programs are for the most part well and truly over. No one remembers what they learnt. If you are lucky, they apply a few tools and techniques randomly. 

The amount of ‘scrap’ learning is truly frightening when you do the maths: an average day of training could cost you around $600 - $700 without counting the cost of the person being off the floor or away from their desk. 90% of that learning is forgotten within a few weeks, depending on whose research you listen to. Even my basic maths can figure out just how much money has been thrown away. Yes, the person did indeed have a good day out the office or could spend some time Zooming with colleagues. They probably feel very grateful that they were specially selected to attend this training – which in turn buys you a better level of engagement when survey time rolls around again.

So, what can we do to ensure that we truly train people in the key power skills that they apply these skills particularly when organisations need more agility, more innovation and more than even before.

1.     Setting up a library of digital learning assets is great and certainly a first step. Ensure that the library is curated and people can find what they need. Make it a priority to have materials available in micro format so that users can jump around within the content to find what they need. Accept the fact that no user is going to swim around for 30 – 45 minutes in an elearn to find the one model that they need to frame a tough conversation. They will go to Ms Google and find it there with ease.

2.     The days of hand-picking a select few people to attend power skills programs will not meet the need in your entire organisation. You cannot go small in this regard – mass is where it’s at. The changes are then noticeable and more visible role models are in place to set the tone and the pace.

Scale is achievable if you think outside the confines of the formal training room that usually cannot physically accommodate more than 15 or 20 people. Think virtual classroom where you can accommodate far more people in a session – and they can come from any part of the business. This is now very much an accepted part of the learning eco-system. And because the sessions are short, you select the key learning to focus on. That keeps everyone on their toes and engaged. And then back to work they go.

3.     Embed and embed. That’s your secret sauce. If people don’t recall their skills and don’t apply them, we are back at square 1. This is really the crux of it: can you ensure that people are indeed using their skills so that there is a change in behaviour?

Enter the role of immersive learning. The results are proving to be incredibly encouraging. As your team is immersed in a realistic virtual environment, they have the opportunity to practice their skills. As Josh Bersin describes it:

“In VR, learners are completely immersed in a realistic virtual environment meant to replicate their work environment, so that they experience a phenomenon called “presence.” This means their brain is treating the VR experience the same way it would treat real life, which makes their soft skills training more authentic and memorable.”

What’s even more useful is the benefit of being able to self-assess and review the recorded video of your immersive learning moment. The data that is gleaned is extremely powerful when determining who needs additional coaching and who is an expert. You will know precisely who has hit all the measures that they are expected to achieve in a conversation and which team members or managers require additional support.

And the strength of this is that it is like a coaching program at scale. The data enables you to provide the additional support to the people who need it and so your budget is properly targeted.

Some areas where immersive learning is incredibly powerful:

·       Any form of tough conversation. Some scenarios have focused on conversations with customers to achieve positive outcomes. 

·       Give or receive feedback on performance. This is always a challenging conversation to navigate and yet is critical to a positive organisational culture. You can sit there and splutter through or have the appropriate word power to frame the conversation well.

·       Using empathy. Not so easy to truly walk a mile in someone else’s shoes. Immersive learning takes you into the other person’s world and allows you to see things from their perspective. This visceral experience is a game changer beyond what can be achieved through reading or listening only.

Speak to us at MCI to assist you in creating a learning strategy that brings out the best in your organisation in terms of up-skilling them in applying their power skills.