Are Employers Overemphasizing Tech Training at the Expense of Human Skills?

As work increasingly leverages both human and machine capabilities, employees still view human skills like adaptability, leadership, and communication as important to their career advancement. But many don’t believe their employers value those skills as much as technical skills.

This is according to an external survey conducted by Deloitte to discover what employees want from corporate learning and development opportunities. 

Three in five survey respondents said they believe their company is more focused on immediate business needs than on providing the training they need for long-term success. And nearly all respondents (94%) are concerned that future generations will enter the workforce without the necessary human skills.

“Organizations that overemphasize technical training at the expense of enduring human capabilities—like divergent thinking, emotional agility, and resilience—could end up impeding innovation and leaving employees ill-equipped to lead teams, adapt to market opportunities, and fully harness the potential of technology,” said Anthony Stephan, chief learning officer for Deloitte U.S. “Technical and human skills are symbiotic, which is why leaders should take a ‘Yes AND’ approach—for the investments they make in tech skills, developing an equally exciting and critical human skill experience.”

Survey respondents indicated they want their employers to prioritize skills like teamwork and collaboration, communication, and leadership, all of which ranked higher than technical skills like artificial intelligence (AI) integration and data analysis, according to Deloitte. Nearly three-quarters of employees said their company has pushed a new technology-based skillset only for that technology to eventually fall out of use. Meanwhile, 95 percent of survey respondents said human skills are timeless and always important.

Most survey respondents expressed a desire to learn from their peers through mentorship programs and interactions with colleagues. More than half said they value on-the-job observation and shadowing opportunities. “In an environment often marked by disruptions, leaders at all levels should be more intentional than ever about teaching and learning from each other—across generations, channels, and locations—in the flow of everyday work,” noted Stephan.

From: BenefitsPRO