I’m confident that when you picture your team, there are certain individuals that if they left your organization tomorrow would pose a risk to your business
Your teams and customers are expecting seamless digital experiences. In their minds, if working with or for you isn’t as easy as picking the Netflix show, they watched last night, or ordering that shirt off Amazon, last night that arrived this morning, the experience isn’t meeting their basic expectations. The last couple of years have only amplified these expectations. It’s unlikely you haven’t had internal discussions about how your department must evolve to support your clients’ new set of needs. For most companies, the answer is undoubtedly accelerating digitalization efforts agreed upon before the pandemic, and perhaps new ones that have arisen. Aside from making the right technology choices, the question your peers are asking is, “How do I ensure my team has the skills to keep pace?”
Today, digital skills gaps are often tied to in-demand technical skills like an understanding of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), cloud computing, cybersecurity or project management. In fact, according to an HBR article nearly two-thirds of mid-market leaders say a digital skills gap in their workforce is holding them back from even more aggressive pursuits. However, the skills gaps most likely also include interpersonal or soft skills like communication, cross-functional collaboration, organization and change management, and with 51% of the same mid-market leaders saying they’re challenged by employee communications, engagement and productivity, it feels like interpersonal skills are just as important, if not more important, than the technical skills.
Couple that with everything else you’re up against: