TalentLMS, a leading learning management system backed by Epignosis and Workable, released a report which reveals that 72% of tech workers in the U.S. are thinking of quitting their job in the next 12 months. Top reasons include a lack of flexibility and lack of learning and development opportunities.

With the many interruptions and re-prioritizations being forced upon employers due to COVID-19 for the past 18 months or so, employee development has lagged in many organizations. Employers and employees have had to work through:

Michigan’s Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity will award more than $30 million to employers for worker training and development. If your organization is pursuing 2022 funds to assist with short term training for both new and incumbent employees, applications are accepted September 20 – October 15, 2021.

For several reasons employee development is currently being left behind. One reported reason is training and development expenses have been significantly cut back during COVID-19. In addition to that, ASE is also hearing that employers are limiting employee training because of the labor shortage and business demands.

Work from anywhere, distributed workforce, remote work…whatever you call it, there will likely be some challenges in such areas as payroll, time zones, virtual interviews, and onboarding. 

Earlier this week, TalentLMS, a leading learning management system, and The Purple Campaign, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending sexual harassment in the workplace, released the results of a survey on sexual harassment training at work. The results reveal that men and women have significantly different beliefs as to what constitutes sexual harassment.

Leaders must perform well even during the tough times.  While all organizations have crises, over the past year every organization experienced the same crisis – the COVID-19 pandemic.  There are several guiding principles to leading during a crisis:

Developing a strategy for reskilling allows organizations to retrain current employees to take on new roles. This can keep your company viable during times of change – without the additional time and expense of hiring brand-new employees.

Talent acquisition and talent management have traditionally been separate functions within human resources, but now some companies are starting to combine them under the umbrella of one leadership position.

With cyberattacks increasing dramatically after the pandemic, TalentLMS and Kenna Security teamed up to gauge employees’ awareness and knowledge of cybersecurity risks. While 59% of employees received cybersecurity training from their companies in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, the survey uncovered that these initiatives have been insufficient.

No matter your career level, personal development is always important. Personal development skills are qualities and abilities that help you grow both personally and professionally.

Skill:  noun – In the workplace it is “A particular ability that you develop through training and experience and that is useful in a job.”

Skilling: noun/verb – Also in the workplace is “The action of training a worker to do a particular task.”

Obstacles caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have necessitated many companies to restructure their talent management strategies.  Employee development is more critical than ever before.  Regardless, research results indicate that only about half (54%) of HR professionals say their organization has a career development process.

On September 22, 2020, President Trump issued Executive Order (EO) 13950 titled “Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping.”  The EO arose because various federal agencies had a private diversity-consulting firm conduct a training session last June titled “Difficult Conversations About Race in Troubling Times.”  This EO is now enjoined as of December 23, 2020 and cannot be enforced by the federal government.  

A new survey conducted by TalentLMS looked at how remote work training and work habits have changed since 2019 – now that remote work is the norm rather than the exception.  They strived to answer one main question – does offering your remote workforce training opportunities make a difference in their performance, happiness, and company loyalty?