40% of Tech Professionals Fear Skill Obsolescence in 3 Years, Yet Time Constraints, the #1 Barrier, Block Crucial Upskilling !
Nicolas BEHBAHANI
Global People Analytics & HR Data Leader - People & Culture | Strategical People Analytics Design
❗️ Gen Z employees are the most concerned about their skills becoming obsolete within the next three years.
🏆 Time constraints are the top barrier to upskilling for nearly half of employees (47%), highlighting the challenge of balancing long-term learning needs with daily job responsibilities.
⚠️ Almost half (46%) of workers find corporate training boring, and 37% say it’s presented in a way that fails to engage.
❌ Despite their efforts to upskill, many employees feel their hard work goes unrecognized. Nearly half of those surveyed report that their learning efforts are unnoticed or unrewarded by their company, leading to struggles with motivation, according to a new interesting research published by Kahoot! and conducted online within the United States in collaboration with market-research consultancy Researchscape International from August 26 to September 3, 2024, using data from 1,041 full time office workers from selected industries including technology, healthcare and financial services.
✅Today’s Skills: Outdated in Just 5 Years
🔥 Researchers noticed that 74% of employees report that they worry about skill obsolescence, and 46% expect their current skills will no longer be useful in 5 years or less.
32% specifically cite AI's rapid evolution as their main source of anxiety and nearly a quarter (23%) fear being replaced due to outdated skills
Gen Z employees are the most worried about their skills becoming obsolete within the next 3 years (39%), coinciding with the increasing automation of tasks normally done by entry-level workers.
✅Major Barriers to Effective Upskilling
🏆 Researchers have identified time constraints as the top barrier to upskilling.
The workforce is also under significant strain: 74% report experiencing fatigue, with 34% feeling completely drained by their current workloads. The constant demand for learning exacerbates this pressure, as one-third of employees feel overwhelmed by the amount of training required to remain effective in their roles.
☝️ Notably, those who worry about their skills becoming obsolete within the next year are also the most exhausted or drained at work, highlighting the critical impact of adequate learning opportunities on employee well being.
✅Engagement is Key to Effective Learning in the AI-Driven Era
Researchers have noted that employee engagement should remain a top priority for trainers.
AI-enhanced tools have revolutionized the L&D field, allowing trainers to save valuable time on content creation and training delivery.
Despite the rapid advancement of AI, only 4% of employees believe it diminishes the importance of meaningful engagement in training. In fact, 43% assert that focusing on engagement is even more crucial when using AI in training, underscoring the need for human-centered learning experiences, even with technological support.
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📍 Finally, researchers offer the following recommendations for leaders to effectively upskill their workforce:
✔️ Rethink how you prioritize training
✔️ Take advantage of technology, but stay focused on engagement
✔️ Boost motivation for learning with employee recognition
✔️ Microlearning: Create bite-sized learning moments any employee can fit into their schedule and complete at their own pace.
✔️ Weave learning into the flow of work: integrate learning into meetings, presentations, events, and more, without employees needing to take extra time to complete a training.
✔️ Gamify learning to create experiences that energize and engage, offering a welcome break from more draining work activities. Friendly competition/game-based learning is also Gen Z’s top choice for methods that would make them feel more engaged in learning at work!
✔️ Peer-to-peer learning can offer employees valuable knowledge and support. Companies can begin fostering collaborative learning by setting aside times for employees to connect and exchange information or ideas, as well as providing resources and tools to share knowledge quickly, easily, and in engaging ways.
✔️ On-demand learning content is also an important solution, by making it easy for employees to access the information they need, when they need it, through engaging learning experiences.
☝️ 𝙈𝙮 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬:
This insightful research uncovers intriguing patterns in the learning challenges faced by both employees and employers. Notably, 40% of tech professionals predict their skills will become obsolete within three years, and an equal percentage believe their employers’ learning agendas fail to align with individual career goals. Additionally, 39% report a lack of opportunities for peer-to-peer learning. These statistics underscore the substantial work still required in the L&D field. However, as researchers illustrate, despite the rapid advancement of AI-assisted training , engagement and recognition of employees still demand a human touch.
🙏Thank you Kahoot! researchers team for sharing these insightful findings:
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Global HR Advisor 🌍 | AI Talent Acquisition Strategist | Digital HR Innovation Expert | Middle East Tech Recruitment Specialist 🚀 | ICF-ACC & OKR Certified Coach
1wGreat insights! Addressing time constraints and engaging learning methods is crucial. Recognizing employee efforts and integrating modern training techniques can make a significant difference.
Fractional CHRO | HR Consultant | People & Culture | Change Management |Talent Management
2wNicolas BEHBAHANI upskilling is the critical need for professional uplift and being relevant. Uncertainty is shadowing the entire professional landscape and it entails for the organisations to be on their toes to ensure continuous and needbased upskilling programs for tech and non tech employees. I like your idea of weaving learning into workflow is more practical. Thanks once again
Shifting the paradigm on work-life ownership & Empowering the talent potential of every employee with realtime people analytics to enhance performance and well-being through personal leadership
2wNicolas BEHBAHANI This is incredibly important research, especially in the current climate. On the one hand, it reflects a high level of awareness that 40% of tech professionals fear their skills may become obsolete in the future. On the other hand, these figures highlight a significant gap in how corporations address and train for skills development-particularly when certain skill trainings are perceived as less engaging or "boring." The real challenge lies in raising awareness about the need to shift from a rigid, pre-programmed educational system to a culture of lifelong learning that focuses on developing the skills required for the future. This requires both the motivation to keep learning and a commitment to make time for it. Organizations and individuals alike must embrace this mindset and recognize "accomplishments" to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving landscape.
Industry Veteran | Exploring Future of Work | Great Manager’s Coach & Mentor
2w"Waqt hot nahi hai, nikalna padta hai. Nicolas BEHBAHANI. 😆 Are careers on a tick-tock (or are folks just busy on TikTok - Social media)? 🧞♂️ Skill obsolescence in 3 years? Think of it as a blessing, soon it might be down to 1 year. ❓ AI with personalized focused learning is the solution!
Lead consultant in HR Strategy & Value Management. Enhancing Value through Human Performance. Delivery of Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Training. Lecturer and International Speaker on HRM and Value Management.
2wGreat post Nicolas. I would like to share this with you: A few years ago I was talking to the owner of a software company. He had called in a consultant to look at his operations and had been told that, if he wanted to increase productivity, he needed to separate his software teams. The outcome being that the teams became insular. They no longer communicated or collaborated with each other. Previously they would even meet up socially but as a result of the 'transformation' this also stopped. The outcome being that there was a downturn in development (loss of implicit learning) leading to a loss in performance. Technology is one area where collaboration and unstructured learning is essential for increased performance. It is also an area that benefits greatly from in-office working as opposed to remote (which, by the introduction of individual silos, tends to have the same effect as segregating teams). It would be interesting to learn how many of the Tech Professionals work remotely and to gain an insight into whether the time constraints referred to are the real cause of poor development or whether the working environment has a greater effect on development and performance (perhaps both?).