Navigating Future Challenges: Training Needs in a Tech-Driven World

Visualize a country immersed in a highly competitive global market, with unprecedented speed of change in technology, management models, customer requirements, and of course, the skills of its employees. To a large extent, business success is fundamentally intertwined with the competencies of its staff. Quality training, professional development and the enhancement of business competitiveness are elements that are closely linked. By educating the workforce, human capital is improved, and as a result, productivity increases. Amid these changes, there are several challenges to confront and overcome. Training policies must accommodate the constant evolution brought on by technological development. Moreover, the current structure fails to anticipate the competencies that the labor market will demand in the future. The national productivity report indicates that 61% of jobs are at risk of being automated in the coming years, and 24% are at high risk of being affected by the advancement of technology. Alongside this, this country is experiencing the fastest ageing population in the region implying that a considerable portion of future tasks will be performed by the older population, necessitating continuous training programs to prevent skill deterioration over time. A third of all workers in this country are employed in positions that require varying degrees of competencies, and half work in fields different from where they studied. This negatively impacts individuals (employability, wages, job satisfaction) and companies (labor turnover, costs, reduced productivity). Consequently, companies face the need to recruit staff with the right competencies and a development plan that will support the organizational objectives. This presents a challenge to the human resources function; their response will play a significant role in determining organizational success. A student is asked to prepare a process for identifying training needs in an organization for the next five years, particularly concerning technological developments. S/he is tasked with detailing the necessary instruments for such a process and formulating a staff training plan. The plan is to take into account that 30% of the employees are at high risk of being affected by technological changes, aiming to equip them with the skills to make a valuable contribution to the organizational objectives.