Covid-19 and the Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0) have brought to the fore the central importance of individuals learning new skills. Finding opportunities to learn while on their job is a practical way to accelerate lifelong learning in organisations.
Business titan James Cash Penney says: "Growth is never by mere chance; it is the result of forces working together." A culture of lifelong learning is a powerful force for growth in any business. Constant "upskilling" and "reskilling" is the new normal.
In a recent survey, 90 per cent of Malaysian employees believe that learning new skills or broadening their set of knowledge and skills is necessary to stay relevant in an increasingly uncertain job market where IR 4.0 technology will devour nearly half the jobs by the end of the decade.
The advantages of lifelong learning are plentiful. Employees who continuously evolve and improve their skill sets can take advantage of the latest technology that translates to better productivity and innovation. Businesses also improve employee loyalty when they provide continuous learning and development opportunities.
Realising the significance of lifelong learning, the 2021 Budget allocated RM1 billion for upskilling and reskilling programmes for 200,000 trainees.
About RM100 million was allocated under the Human Resources Development Fund to implement training in collaboration with private partners.
Another RM150 million was allocated under the Higher Education Ministry for upskilling graduates.
Here are five suggestions to promote lifelong learning in organisations.
FIRST, a formal mentoring programme should be instituted. Sydney Finkelstein, the author of Superbosses in 2016, writes about how managers emphasise ongoing, intensive one-on-one tutoring of their direct reports, involving connecting personnel with more experienced colleagues or industry experts.
This mentorship offers an employee a platform to talk about their ambitions and challenges and visualise their career growth. Experienced colleagues also appreciate the opportunity to become mentors and share their knowledge and skills. The opportunity to support a colleague's development may even reignite the mentors' enthusiasm for learning!
SECOND, make learning goals as important as performance goals. In addition to an organisation's goals, managers should work with their employees to set individual learning goals. The individual-learning KPIs and milestones for each employee should be mutually agreed.
Ideally, at least two learning goals per employee per quarter should be negotiated. Employees should be empowered to choose the training they're interested in, as that will considerably enhance their job performance.
THIRD, create opportunities for social learning. The 70/20/10 model suggests that employees obtain 70 per cent of their knowledge from job-related experiences, 20 per cent from interactions with co-workers and managers, and 10 per cent from formal learning events.
These "developmental relationships" are the basis of social learning. An employee learns more and better when they learn together. Inviting inspirational industry leaders to share their knowledge and experiences over lunch is another way.
FOURTH, organisations must recognise learning as an achievement and show a genuine appreciation for learning. Recognising learning as an achievement is vital to motivate employees to learn further.
So, recognise learning by rewarding employees with completion certificates, or with time off, vouchers and small gifts.
FIFTH, organisations should build a library of learning resources either physical or electronic. These could include popular or industry-specific books, training manuals, videos and audiobooks. Continuous online training for employees through a collection of e-learning courses is a welcome addition.
Lifelong learning starts with creating an ecosystem that enables employees to have the opportunity to learn. Successful companies find ways to make learning fit within the flow of daily work life. As Albert Einstein said: "Once you stop learning, you start dying."
The writer is the Director of the Centre for Lifelong Learning, AIMST University Malaysia
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times