Aufbau der Belastbarkeit von Arbeitskräften, Teil 2: Die Fähigkeiten (engl.)
In this second article in our three-part series, we share the soft and tangible skills organisations are investing in globally, as employees adjust to post-pandemic life.
If you missed our first article on the need for workforce resilience, find it here.
Learn more about workforce skilling in our interview with Ali Sharif, Learning Consultant, Sponge Group.
What skills are improving workforce resilience?
To be resilient is about finding a level of stability in change. And now, more than ever, we’re seeing organisations across the globe investing in skills that provide a steady influence no matter what unexpected changes emerge.
Communicating vision
We analyse data from clients all over the world and, in the past two years, we’ve seen a sharp rise in demand for communication and change-related skills in Mexico and the United States.
Organisations in Mexico and the United States are looking at how they can master effective communication, write compelling emails, give online pitch presentations, and how they can communicate their vision to a wider audience with impact.
Change has driven this; these organisations are looking to be better leaders in times of change and discovering how to be better change communicators.
Building these skills offers a sound investment, positively offsetting the negative side-effects of uncertainty brought about by the pandemic.
Core resilience skills
We’ve also seen refreshed demand for resilience skills in the United States, especially around building emotional resilience. This signals to us that workplace leaders recognise and value ‘the soft stuff’ as they attempt to strengthen traits such as optimism, emotional awareness, and perseverance in supporting employees.
In Europe, we’ve seen a resurgence in demand for emotional intelligence skills. But we’re also seeing a clear demand for more technical skills around understanding big data and data analytics – pointing to a real desire to prepare for the new working world.
Building trust
Lastly, in the UK, we’ve seen an increased demand for courses in integrity and authenticity amongst leaders, with topics such as ‘building trust with ethics’, ‘showing influence without authority’, and ‘communicating confidently with empathy’ becoming increasingly popular.
This couldn’t be more vital as the need to build authentic relationships remains central to business success, requiring flexible leaders to embrace online paradigms and foster employee connections through digital channels.
The ‘unsung heroes’ – soft skills to bolster resilience
In all this, the trend is clear. The right mindset is needed to quickly adapt, learn, and thrive in the new world of work. Providing people with only the practical and technical skills is insufficient to build an engaged and cohesive workforce. It’s equally critical to invest in the softer skills - the ‘unsung heroes’ - to strengthen resilience.