Why learning shouldn't be employee downtime anymore

We’re surrounded by technology in our professional and personal lives. Digital technologies allow that individuals can raise a business, which in the past required an enterprise structure and significant team size.

While access to information is becoming highly democratized, providing experiences to master new subjects is still considered as a transitional exercise in organizations: learning & training.

Adoption of new technologies in working environments will require significant up- and reskilling initiatives for people in organizations: According to #WEF in its 2020 Jobs Reset Summit 50% of all employees will need reskilling by 2025. Furthermore, the type of skills being problem-solving, self-management, working with people and technology use and development will demand that companies become learning organizations that manage know how in a network of equally located nodes: know how isn’t then a currency of power anymore but the fuel catering for making an organization adaptive to new (fast-changing) circumstances.

Companies relying on technology in their business execution, are in the trap of attracting the talent today to master the technology stack needed for a sustained business execution in the future. So, it’s first and foremost about creating an environment where learning is a natural component in the job execution rather than a training to fix a problem or close a skill gap.

In this article I am sharing my thoughts why learning shouldn’t be considered as an employee downtime anymore, but as an integrative part of the daily job execution. Up- and reskilling initiatives in companies need to address how people are leveling up their capabilities for continuous learning to become technology fluent.

Over the last months I’ve occasionally posted about future skill demand and this article will provide the context around the posts - so if you missed them, continue reading for an embedding context.

Resistance to change often happens because of a lack of imagination ...

...and a result of missing skills in relevant technologies and how those can support human beings for their benefit (rather than being detrimental or widening gaps to wealth and prosperity).

With the importance of technology in business execution and the speed how technology advances are changing entire industries, a new vocabulary is needed to make sense of technological change and to make people in organizations consistently technology fluent. The speed is sometimes breathtaking and keeping up the motivation to adapt to new environments is becoming more important for enjoying the benefits of these changes as lifelong learning.

Lifelong learning can reinforce what will stay the same in an environment of transformation and thus overcome resistance to change - per Adam Grant:

Research shows that when people are resistant to change, it helps to reinforce what will stay the same. Visions for change are more compelling when they include visions of continuity. Although our strategy might evolve, our identity will endure.

So, lifelong learning might be a good response but needs to be indulged at every stage of our life to generate the needed continuity - specially in business environments, where graduated-and-done jobs are still dominating the position fills:

• Mental safety strives for learning from failure and ultimate mastery as important key aspect in early adulthood
• The combination of physical and mental health is beneficial for learning capabilities in later life stages
• Diversity in personalities and 2-way mentoring avoids to be fooled by the own wisdom; it actually makes space for failure even in advanced life stages
• Learning is a lifetime activity and learning to learn, too!

Speed of technology advances and the way how businesses are impacted by compelling events, where the access to a new technology is suddenly democratized, e.g. due to degressive cost effects, requires a new language how technological change is treated by humans and thus in society and economy.

According to Azeem Azahr in his book “Exponential” (???to the book ??):

Technology changes are occurring faster than ever and a new vocabulary is needed to make sense of technological change. In the exponential age “one primary input for a company is its ability to process information. One of the main costs to process that data is computation. And the cost of computation didn’t rise each year ; it declined rapidly.

The future top skills aren't part of "one-and-done-graduate" jobs anymore

In the past, job profiles in organizations were created in a very functional manner: accounting, compliance, controlling, legal and many others were the functions that had to be filled with graduated candidates. Gaining new capabilities specially when being distant to the actual job family wasn’t really rewarded. Workflow automation and the constant build up of AI in business processes are requiring a continuous mastery of new skills.

This is being reflected in the 4 skill types the #wef has defined for the future top 10 skills (???to relevant sources ??):

Skill Type 1: Problem-solving skills

Analytical thinking is a way of understanding the world through observation, experimentation, and logical reasoning. Innovation is the process of creating new ideas or products. It involves creativity and risk-taking.

?Why it matters?

???Our world becomes increasingly complex and requires the mastery of multidisciplinary domain expertise. Analytical thinking is an important problem-solving skill to drive innovation.

???Using adequate technologies accelerates the innovation cycle and allows for user feedback to fuel continuous improvement.

?How to learn it?

???Start abstracting instead of relying on narrowing examples

???Use as much data as possible to quantify your hypotheses and get out of the frog view trap

???Thinking out loud: verbalize your thought process, share it with your community and iterate into adequate options

Complex problem-solving is the much needed response to cover the interdependencies of compelling events and coincidences in our global world that require for solutions.

?Why it matters?

???Crises are happening globally, sometimes unprecedented and often even in parallel.

???Solutions for emerging problems should not compromise on people, profit or planet

?How to learn it?

???Consider scientific thinking for a proper problem description: access to information and knowledge is increasingly democratized for not being used to adequately describe the problem (incl. global impact).

???Decompose problems into smaller and more manageable sizes where you have a direct assignment of experienced members in your community.

Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation - Reasoning is the ability to think logically and solve problems. It is a key cognitive skill that helps us make sense of our surroundings and take decisions accordingly.

?Why it matters?

???Today’s complex problems require multidisciplinary approaches to identify the root cause of the problem and develop creative solutions that address the issue.

???Innovation is then often the cumulative and creative combination of engineering, technology, energy and finance domains.

?How to learn it?

???Applying scientific thinking allows for an evidence based conclusion on potential solutions and avoids being overconfident and laser-focused on early identified solutions.

???Rethinking and reiteration avoid affirming our beliefs instead of evolving them.

Creativity, originality and initiative can best flourish in diverse and empowered teams. Only then ideal solutions can emerge as result from considering various perspectives.

?Why it matters?

???In our global world, we need to consider different views, perspectives and circumstances to avoid that conflicts escalate into unmanageable crises.

???While success stories of diverse teams are arising, some areas are still lacking diversity due to misconceptions about the needs for a specific gender, social background, expertise gained in the past, etc.

?How to learn it?

???Human beings are by nature individualists - stop to categorize people with prejudices

???As a servant leader create a space for safe creativity and learning - and celebrate achievements

Skill Type 2: Self-management skills

Active learning and employing learning strategies as part of the operational job execution guarantee the employability of everyone in a company.

?Why it matters?

???Adoption of technology advances happens faster than ever.

???Talent attraction correlates with mastery level of employed technology in an organization.

???Tech-dependent businesses can’t afford a high tech debt which translates into a market follower position

?How to achieve active learning?

???Create a learning culture with respective role models in top management

???Empowerment of people for exploration, experimentation and fast learning of new ideas

???Create a knowledge network of equal nodes, as know how often sits with frontline employees

Resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility: Resilience is the ability to recover from or adjust easily to difficult situations. It's about bouncing back after adversity and being able to adapt in the face of change. Everyone experiences stress at some point in their lives, but resilient people are able to manage it effectively and move on with their lives.

?Why it matters?

???In today's fast-paced world, it's more important than ever to be resilient and cope with stress and setbacks.

???Whether you're a professional dealing with work-related stress or a customer facing challenging situations, being resilient can help you get through tough times.

?How to build it and increase your resilience quotient?

???Develop a positive outlook and learn how to see challenges as opportunities for personal growth

???Develop healthy coping mechanisms, such as exercise, relaxation techniques, and talking openly about your feelings with trusted friends or family members

???Building strong social support networks can provide additional resources and help during difficult times

Skill Type 3: Working with people

Leadership and social influence: Today’s leaders need to be a role model in their business execution, for society and as active learners. Only then they are approachable for resilience and future vision.

?Why it matters?

???Leading people goes beyond managing a team allowing for controversial debates, negotiation of business targets for a sustainable purpose

???Younger generations are increasingly asking for purpose in what they’re doing - and this is reasonable!

?How to learn it?

???As a leader be willing to reinvent yourself - only then you’re credible enough to demand stretched targets from your team

???Share your learnings while reinventing yourself - vulnerability is the strongest emotional superpower to get your team behind you

Skill Type 4: Technology use and development

Technology use, monitoring and control: Technology is determining business and not the other way round. Ever since humans have been technologists: tools have been used to make the life easier and some of those tools and technologies have created a major impact to usher in a new age.

?Why it matters?

???Innovation cycles in technology are increasingly compressed. Speed in technology adoption determines the contestability of a company in a market.

???With digital technologies and tools almost everyone can find an audience and build up a business for income and wealth creation.

?How to learn it?

???Rethink a process stepwise how tools and the digital footprints (utilization data) can ease its application.

???Build systems based on tools that allow for reusability and multidisciplinary adoption of different domains.

??Remember: Business innovation is often the creative cumulative combination of engineering, technology, energy and finance domain, creating the niche you need to provide a differentiated user experience.

Technology design and programming: Innovation happens by the employment of technology advances. The broad acceptance of new products and services are the result of an unmet need being fulfilled according to the customer expectation. Design and programming using adequate technology explores and anticipates human needs.

?Why it matters?

???Technology innovation refers to the process of introducing new technologies into the marketplace with the aim of creating an improvement.

???It can involve the development of new products or services, the introduction of new business models, or the development of a new technology.

?How to learn it?

???Try to understand the technological progression behind an innovation rather than just mastering using the tool features.

???Explore & experiment new tools and concepts and share your experience for community learning and to accelerate progression.

Tech-enabled transformation is about people (and their ability to adapt) ...

... less about technology.

The described skill types reflect quite well that being proficient in selected domains of expertise is not enough to sustain success amid fast changing environments, it’s more around mastering approaches, performing system thinking, self-management and human first people development.

A wonderful example can be seen nowadays, how the impact of generative AI - specifically the usage of ChatGPT - is being perceived - not least by media pushing the headlines and stoking fears for better commercialization of magazine editions.

Generative AI products, like #chatgpt , GitHub 's Copilot, DALL-E, #stablediffusion etc. are leveling up assistive technology and what is even more impressive: these products are bringing powerful capabilities to nontechnical users.

Generative AI can help nontechnical users in their daily work in a variety of ways, from automation of mundane tasks to providing insights and analysis on complex data sets. Generative AI can be used to automate tasks such as scheduling meetings, making travel arrangements, and gathering data from multiple sources. It can also provide insights and analysis on data sets, allowing users to better understand their data and make informed decisions. For example, generative AI can be used to detect patterns in customer data, allowing businesses to better understand their customer base and discover new opportunities. Additionally, generative AI can be used to generate content, such as marketing copy or web content, which can save time and resources. Generative AI can also be used to create new products, or augment existing products, which can help businesses stay ahead of their competition. Generative AI is a powerful tool that can help nontechnical users increase their productivity and make better decisions.

The above text has been written by the AI assist of #notion with the prompt “How can generative AI help in my daily work as a nontechnical user?” While I love how notion has integrated (in its private alpha) an AI language model into their system, I have to admit, that of course, above text is not perfect!

But it’s impressive in the sense, that I am getting options for further exploration and it’s about me now to decide whether I am iterating my prompt for better outcome or how I am redeploying this piece of information.

In business environments we’re often tempted to see the pure efficiency increase caused by technology - still coming from an age where people were doing highly repetitive work as if they were the better robots. With technology employment like now the usage of generative AI, we are better advised to rethink our role in assessing technology:

Humans are developing technology and it’s that humans can decide how technology is augmenting our (emotional) intelligence, become a trusted co-worker and prevent us from danger and other threats harming our health safety.

With the faster technology progress (like we are perceiving now with generative AI) the importance of ethics and creating an environment, where technology for good is being incentivized to create human-first environments and sustain societal progression, will be a high priority of a collective human endeavor.

It means a shift to a comprehensive view about technology employment and transparency based on closing knowledge gaps in an organization, a community and in society. Providing options for lifelong and continuous learning to people is then a must-have and relying on human’s capability to make the right choices should create the confidence for a technology use that supports and augments humanity instead of causing harm.

What does it mean for you?

I am a strong believer, that transparency and learning will close gaps of access to technology and increase the confidence, that technology use shouldn’t be the privilege of a small group of people. Instead, every technology advance should encourage broadly its exploration to benefit from a collective intelligence based on knowledge sharing and community learning.

Today, compelling events happen in a fast sequence and often unprecedented - the resulting challenges often require multidisciplinary approaches and speed in problem solving. Artificially reducing the group of people eligible to provide solution options, has often been the approach in the past by forming task forces and for some (selected) examples, it still might be the option of choice.

However, today’s problems can’t be solved with approaches from the past. It’s more about coming up with a viable first idea, test it and learn about the outcomes to adapt for new trials and new ideas. This can happen in an environment, where learning is a lifetime activity and learning to learn, too, because two things are and always will be true about learning: anyone can get better at anything and the cost of improvement is failure.

Sources:

#mckinsey on generative AI

Adam Grant - "Think Again" --> My review on LinkedIn

Azeem Azhar: His blog "Exponential View" - His Book "Exponential!"

#WEF Sources: 2023 - Skills and Jobs for the workplace in the future 2020 - top 10 work skills of tomorrow