Business management
employees more versatile, adaptable and better suited for the evolving needs of the organisation.” While the need to upskill the younger workers grows more pressing, however, that doesn’t mean those from other demographics can sit out class. “The opportunity to upskill is consistent across all career levels and life stages,” says Hay. “In fact, our oldest apprentice is approaching 60. It’s never too late to learn a new skill or make a change.”
Back to class With so many reasons to upskill, what are companies offering in practice? DHL has six different levels of apprenticeships available, which span over 40 different standards, offering routes into the industry for individuals of any age. For existing colleagues, DHL offers its group-wide certified initiative, part of which is the Certified Supply Chain Manager (CSCM) training. From there, they are encouraged onto appropriate courses, to pursue further training from certified facilitators within the business. These courses are, of course, varied and adapted to suit the demands of each division within the company. For example, those working within the supply chain are encouraged to take part in DHL’s Road Safety Code, which offers driving-training courses and traffic-safety programmes. There’s also a management development programme, Leadership@DHLGroup, which Hays describes as being built upon a core foundation of respect and results, “putting respect for colleagues, their achievements and growth at the heart of what it means to be a good leader and seeks to transform the thought processes of our leadership”. From there, the Supervisory Academy is a 60-week programme where leaders learn essentials such as safety and supervisory routines, coaching, driving change and communication. Meanwhile, Schneider Electric has taken a less traditional approach to its employees’ education. While there are still plenty of opportunities for those in their early careers – apprenticeships, graduate roles and internships – in 2020 the company launched Schneider Electric University, an online e-learning platform that provides more than 200 free courses in over 14 languages. The courses aim to deliver timely unbiased information from data and energy experts on wide ranging issues, such as energy consumption and measurement, efficiency applications and ROI calculations. Curtis describes it as “vendor-neutral”, meaning “for anyone, our own employees or anyone in industry, seeking to improve their career path or company steps towards efficiency”. While there are progressive (some may say idealistic) incentives behind this model – as Curtis explains, Schneider believes that by sharing knowledge freely, a more educated consumer will
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ultimately create a healthier planet – the university was also developed to directly address the industry’s skills gap and talent shortage.
Schneider itself quotes an Uptime Institute survey from 2021 that found 32% of respondents reported difficulty in retaining staff and 47% having difficulty finding qualified candidates for open jobs. The logic behind the university is that, by encouraging individuals to upskill and continue their professional development for free, businesses can attract, retrain both new and existing talent, and have access to specialised technical education, everywhere.
“The opportunity to upskill is consistent across all career levels and life stages. In fact, our oldest apprentice is approaching 60. It’s never too late to learn a new skill or make a change.”
Nicki Hay
Along with pandemics and lockdowns, 2020 also brought to light the need for everyone to evaluate their approach towards diversity. Improving employee understanding of D&I has been a key area for Schneider’s learning and development initiatives, launching an inclusive leadership programme that, as Curtis explains, “teaches our leaders to make sure that they are thinking in an inclusive way and making sure that we are providing that level of care”. The world may always be constantly changing, but over the past few years, it has transformed particularly fast. Businesses need to evolve their culture and training in order to match changing public attitudes, whether that’s new emerging technology or developing environmental and social beliefs. While trends will always change – and roles must therefore change too – what stays consistent, however, is the need to provide up-to-date training. ●
There are many reasons to upskill, but what are companies offering in practice?
26%
The percentage of employees that report the desire for better and more frequent training as the top reason for leaving a role.
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