Digital Transformation: Why Companies Need To Invest More In Training

The majority of companies in Europe see the lack of skills for digital transformation as the most significant challenge. As a new study by Skillsoft shows, half of the companies surveyed want to invest more in employee training.

As a new study by Skillsoft shows, companies across Europe face the great challenge of equipping their employees with the necessary know-how for the change due to the digital transformation. The research carried out in Great Britain, France, and Germany showed that retraining, training, and further education are the most significant problems for ​​employee development due to the changing and increasingly digital work environments.

Digital Transformation: Imparting New Qualifications

With an average of 42 percent, the lack of know-how for new requirements in digitization was named by the participants from all countries as the number 1 challenge. On average, only 22 percent of all respondents said their organizations were sufficiently prepared to provide the new qualifications required for digital transformation. Around 20 percent of the respondents agreed.

In Great Britain, the respondents rated the state of the preparations significantly worse. Here only 14 percent of the organizations stated that they have fully trained employees with the appropriate skills. In contrast, 33 percent of organizations in France saw themselves as fully prepared. The majority of respondents from all three countries said their organizations need to do more to keep up with digital developments.

Digital Transformation: Coordinate Employee Development Programs

The participants in the study regard the coordination of the learning opportunities and programs for employee development with the business strategy as a further challenge. The biggest obstacle for the respondents is the rapid shift in priorities and focal points . In France, with 22 percent, the lack of knowledge and awareness of the problem for training and further education is the first place, with the participants from Great Britain the overburdened teams. Silos within the organization and a lack of awareness of management were also cited as important reasons.

While the surveyed experts from education and training from all countries agree that the digital transformation affects all areas of the company, they see different areas of the company to which this is particularly true.

Challenges In Changing IT Requirements

Twenty-six percent of those surveyed also see the rapid change in IT requirements as the greatest obstacle to the successful implementation of the digital transformation. Twenty-four percent also cited the challenge of meeting the needs of a multi-generational workforce. At 23 percent, the limited budget is also in the top three challenges when implementing measures. Building up an interest in learning, proof of the success of qualification measures, and implementing learning opportunities in several languages.

“It is becoming clear that the digital transformation in all three countries is putting those responsible for training and employee development as well as their planning, implementation and financing of measures to a severe test. Even if around half of the companies surveyed are planning targeted investments, the challenge of keeping pace with the changes brought about by digitization is enormous, ”explains Steve Wainwright, Managing Director EMEA at Skillsoft.

“It is therefore of crucial importance that companies make use of the technical possibilities available today in order to implement successful L&D strategies. This is the only way they can use digitization to offer their employees the best development opportunities, improve their learning behavior and expand their skills, ”said Steve Wainwright.

Also Read: How To Promote Corporate Digitalization And How To Do It?