Is it time to upskill?

For most of us, staying current — and even anticipating future skills we’ll need on the job — is no longer a nice-to-have. It can be important to be able to say to current or prospective employers, “‘Not only do I have these skills that are marketable, but I can demonstrate that I have these skills ,’” says Severy. 

Typically, that means “upskilling,” or adding new or improved skills to a baseline set of credentials. This could mean that your current job is changing, and you need to expand what you’re doing — such as learning how to leverage generative artificial intelligence (AI) or improving your problem-solving or management skills. Or it might be because you’re moving into a new realm entirely, whether due to a promotion or starting a new job. 

Either way, Severy says, “the rate of change in the world of work is phenomenal. It’s so much faster now, and we will all need resilience and flexibility to continually adapt in a field as it changes. … Reskilling and upskilling are essential whether you want to advance or just stay where you are without sliding.”

In 2020, the World Economic Forum went so far as to call for a “Reskilling Revolution ,” noting that 1.1 billion jobs are “likely to be radically transformed by technology in the next decade.”

If you’re still in doubt about whether you need to learn more, Severy offers a simple place to start: Read through job descriptions for your current job or roles you want. “You may start to see gaps. You might have met 10 out of 10 skills for the job you have, but now that job or a similar position is only eight out of 10,” she explains.

Another potential sign that it’s time to beef up your credentials is if you’ve been asked or “voluntold” to add a new responsibility to your current role. “If they’re things you don’t feel comfortable with, it’s a good time to invest in [learning] that,” Severy says.

Now it’s time for some good news: There are many accessible and flexible ways to enhance your skills.

Start close to home, Severy suggests: “In most organizations, there are resources internally to gain new skills by taking professional development classes.”

Also important: Ask your manager which competencies could help you prepare for future opportunities or to simply excel in your current position. Generally speaking, she says, “the more related to your current position, the more likely the organization is to invest in these.”

If your employer doesn’t offer ongoing development or doesn’t have courses in what you’re interested in, Severy recommends seeking out professional associations. Not only will this help you make connections and find resources, but you’ll also get a much better sense of exactly which skills are currently valued in your industry.

“If I see a national association where half the webinars are about using AI in a job search, I know I want to engage in that conversation,” she says, adding that volunteering for an association’s committee or board is an excellent way to develop skills and network. “You want to maintain that sense of being valued, and being an essential part of your organization is a way to have that value.” 

The COI notes that 60% of employers prefer hiring externally over upskilling their existing workforce (even though empowering current employees saves money and improves retention), and that employer investment in reskilling and upskilling continues to decline. So, the reality is that workers themselves will likely have to take the bull by the horns to stay relevant. 

Severy sees this as a virtuous cycle, where improving and adding to your capabilities makes you feel more engaged and that contributes to being valued at work, which makes you want to continue upskilling . Particularly in situations where you feel a lack of control, actively seeking out additional training, degrees, credentials, microcredentials, certificates and badges — especially when you can learn skills online, at your own pace and schedule — can help you take charge of your professional growth. 

Because there are times when leaving a job simply isn’t an option, no matter how stuck and frustrated you feel, continual learning can play another very important role, says Severy. “If you can’t control your setting at the moment, you can take control of investing in yourself,” she says. “Upskilling is an investment in yourself. That investment, in addition to making you more marketable, can also give you more self-worth.” 

She finds it helpful to think of a skill as in one of two categories: content or process. “Content is gathering knowledge and expertise about a topic,” says Severy, while process refers to how to do something — say, how to lead teams, manage projects or program in Python. “If you have a lot of content-based skills, you may want to look at developing your process skills, or vice versa. It can be a well-rounded way to move forward.” 

If there’s one area where people are looking to upskill, it may be AI. Accenture’s annual “Pulse of Change” report  found that C-suite executives plan to invest even more in generative AI  in 2025, but a skills gap persists between what businesses need and what employees know. More than half of the employees surveyed by Accenture say they need more and better training on how to use generative AI tools, though most (64%) understand that AI is going to impact their job and require new skills. 

Which is all to say that AI may be relevant for nearly every job, in one way or another. In fact, you can use it to help you start down the upskilling road. “A good use of AI can be simply asking ChatGPT™, ‘How do I develop my skills in customer service?’ Or ‘I was just promoted to manager of a team of six and I’ve never managed anyone before. What skills are most important in managing people?’” Severy says. “Or you can use AI to do a deep dive into a major  or degree ,” if you’re considering going back to school. 

Once you’ve done the hard work of learning more for your current or a future role, you need to showcase that skill. In addition to adding your new credentials to your resumé and LinkedIn profile, you’ll want to be prepared to talk about this new knowledge, whether in your next job interview, performance review meeting or weekly touch-base with your manager. Severy suggests tapping generative AI for ideas on how to tell a brief story that highlights your strengths and new skills. The COI found that employees who use AI felt more autonomy and a better work-life balance and that it accelerated their skills development — all of which lessen feelings of burnout.

Perhaps what’s most important is simply finding better ways to feel a sense of control over your career, as hard as that can be some days. “Whether you find out from the media or from a professional association, or it’s simply becoming obvious that you’ve reached a ceiling in terms of advancement and you no longer qualify as an essential employee, keep cultivating curiosity about what’s happening in your field,” Severy says. “If anyone coasts in a job, it’s likely that other people are moving higher, and you will be at the bottom before you blink.”

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