While most organisations worldwide are worried about skill shortages, 48% of workers believe the learning resources provided by their employers meet their requirements to allow them to upskill within their role in a constantly evolving world of work. This contrasts with 60% of employers who believe the resources they offer meet the needs of their workers, according to research from Hays and Go1, an online learning provider.

The survey research received over 20,000 responses from both employers and professionals across 26 countries.

When asked how frequently their role requires them to learn new skills, 64% of workers said that they either always or frequently need to learn new skills. Meanwhile, 8% said they either rarely or never had to require new skills. Less than half, or 42%, of workers said there wasn’t a clear development plan currently in place with their employer that involves specific learning, with 27% stating there was.

Alistair Cox, Hays CEO, said, “The speed at which digital transformation has taken place has not been matched by the supply of talent available for these roles. At the same time, what employees look for from their jobs and workplace has changed, and what is expected of employers is no longer the same as it was previously.”

Cox continued, “The need for new skills is not limited to just one sector, it’s an imperative everywhere, and for everyone. As automation increasingly takes over the delivery of repetitive tasks, workers need to upskill their capabilities to ensure they can contribute to more specialised roles.”

The research highlighted that opinions on learning differed between employers and employees. Research showed that 83% of workers are highly interested in learning new skills, whereas only 48% of employers believed their employees were so inclined. The survey also revealed that when it comes to outcomes of learning there is another difference in perception, as 81% of workers believe they regularly apply their new skills effectively, which compares to only 60% of employers stating this to be the case.

Only half, or 52%, of workers said they received learning resources from their employer and 42% were satisfied with the learning that is on offer. This compares to 78% of employers who stated that they provided employees with learning resources.  

Chris Eigeland, Go1 Co-Founder, said, “Even with the best of intentions, many employers seem at a loss to identify and embed the skills needed for an effective workforce. This has resulted in a mismatch between the skills that employers need and the skills that workers actually have. Companies are also weighed down by the challenge of engaging employees in learning. Even employers who recognise the importance of upskilling are struggling to find learning content that meets the full spectrum of their learners’ needs.”