Increasingly, employees judge their employer by how much tech skills training the company offers.
Providing workers with tech skills maximizes their productivity and confidence to do their jobs. However, a 2019 Tech Skills Report suggests that many people don’t have the skills they need and that the training they’re getting isn’t enough. While employers may assume that everyone is tech-savvy in the digital age, the truth is that there is a serious technical skills gap that companies need to fill.
According to the survey results, 80% of U.S. workers say they use technology to perform their job, but nearly a third (28%) don’t think they have the critical tech skills needed to work effectively. Part of the problem is that only half of respondents (55%) said their employer provides tech training for job-relevant tools; and 19% said they haven’t received any tech training at all. Another issue is that the training employees are receiving isn’t enough or the right kind. Respondents who have received training also say they want more. This especially true of millennials, 21% of whom say that they are interested in learning more. Half of working Americans of all ages say they regret not getting more tech training from their employer.
Older workers especially feel high-tech insecurities. Nearly half of baby boomers surveyed (47%) say they don’t feel tech-savvy compared to their younger counterparts. Nearly a third (28%) say they don’t think they have the tech skills necessary to secure a new or better job. In truth, workers of all ages see tech skills as key to professional advancement. Half of respondents across the board (49%) said they believe that training on new technologies would help them increase their annual salary or chance for a promotion. About a third (32%) said they feel pressure to gain new tech skills to protect their current job.
Despite all of the talk about the value of soft skills, 59% of respondents say they would prefer that their employer offer tech training instead of teaching soft skills. Half of employees say that tech skills better prepare them for promotions, advancement, and new opportunities.
Among other findings in the report:
· Over 60% of workers believe that artificial intelligence (AI) will improve how they perform their job.
· 70% of employees say they are more likely to support or vote for a political candidate who makes workforce training a priority.
· Only 33% of workers say they have learned a new technology-related skill in the last six months. Women received more training than men (34% versus 30%).
· Over half of employees (51%) say their employer has introduced a new technology in the past year.
· Almost all employees (91%) said they would be interested in learning new skill sets if their employer offered the opportunity.
The report authors concluded that “with companies continuously introducing new technologies to workers, it’s clear that the workplace will only grow more dependent on the use of technology.” They added, “With workers admitting they aren’t tech-savvy enough to use the current technology needed to perform their job, it’s clear that employers must find training solutions now to close technology skills gaps that are plaguing their employees.”
