How PwC's Digital Upskilling Program Is Preparing Its Workers for the Future

Is your workforce ready to succeed in the digital era? In answer to this critical question, companies such as PwC are doubling down on their investments in digital upskilling. In this article, we discuss:

• What skill requirements of the not-so-distant future look like
• The three core elements of PwC’s digital upskilling program
• Exclusive insights from Sarah McEneaney, digital talent leader at PwC U.S.

In anticipation of the future’s skill requirements, leading organizations around the world have launched their own digital upskilling programs. This is geared to complement K-12 education, and help professionals keep up with fast-evolving workplace trends.

Consider how Amazon said that it wOpens a new window ill spend $700 million to re-train 100,000 employees by 2025 with a keen digital focus. FedEx Express has partnered withOpens a new window Society for Educational Welfare and Economic Development (SEED) to launch a sustainable skills development program in India.

PwC has a multipronged digital upskilling program to develop its in-house talent pool continually. In 2019, the company announcedOpens a new window that it would invest $3 billion into job training for its 275,000 employees around the world, futureproofing its workforce against emerging digital needs.

In its announcement, PwC said that the investment serves four purposes:

• Freeing employees from client-facing/revenue-generating work so that they can undergo upskilling
• The development of digital training tools
• Community projects so that these techniques can find widespread implementation
• Using alliances with the World Economic Forum and the United Nations to localize training for different global markets.

As the impact of digital transformationOpens a new window is felt in the workplace, initiatives like these are essential to maintain people’s employability and position your company as a preferred employer brand. 

In an exclusive with HR Technologist, Sarah McEneaney,Opens a new window digital talent leader at PwC U.S., shares more about this program.

Learn More: Upskilling Strategy 2020 – Is Your Workforce Acquiring Extended Reality (XR) Skills?Opens a new window

The Future of Work Calls for Brand New Skill Sets

Did you know that 3 out of the top 5 most in-demand hard skills for 2020 require digital knowhow?

As per LinkedIn’s 2020 Workplace Learning ReportOpens a new window , blockchain, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence professionals will be in high demand this year. To keep up and prepare for the future of workOpens a new window , professionals must quickly upskill themselves and obtain a functional understanding of these emerging digital technologies.

And studies suggest that current skill levels aren’t suited to meeting this demand.

According to the Vodafone Institute’s survey Opens a new window of 9,000 people, 85% are aware of the need for digital skills, but only 29% said that their current skill levels are adequate.

The World Economic Forum has notedOpens a new window this widening gap between digital skill requirements and availability. It reported that there could be as many as 756,000 vacant jobs in Europe’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) by the end of 2020. It’s no surprise, therefore, that companies like PwC are taking significant measures with their robust digital upskilling program to stay ahead of the curve.

Learn More: How Digital Literacy in the Workplace Can Create a Stronger WorkforceOpens a new window

A Look Into PwC’s Digital Upskilling Program and How It Can Inspire Your Upskilling Strategy

PwC avoids a set-and-forget approach to digital upskilling. Instead, it focuses on continuous assessment of employees’ digital literacyOpens a new window , collaboration on new tech ideas, and learning even outside the PwC ecosystem. McEneaney told us more about these elements:

1. Evaluation of mindset + knowhow

Digital upskilling requires a change-ready attitude as well as training in the requisite hard skills. To achieve this, PwC has a Digital Fitness App (DFA) that offers personalized assessments of each employee’s digital readiness.

“The DFA assessment looks at people’s mindset towards and knowledge of priority digital topics, assigning a score based on the learner’s responses. Learners and their leaders can gain insights on where people fall relative to others in their organization/peer groups,” McEneaney said.

For companies looking to follow in the heels of PwC and start a digital upskilling program, this is an excellent starting line. If a built-from-scratch app isn’t feasible, take a look at Digital Readiness Level – Tool AssessmentOpens a new window .

2. A forum for collaborative innovation

Great ideas need the collaboration of different minds and ways of thought to be implemented effectively. In fact, cognitive diversity Opens a new window can accelerate innovation and make it more viable.

That’s why PwC has established a digital lab, which it calls its “citizen-led community.” Here, employees can design, contribute, and use solutions that transform PwC’s business outcomes. 

“PwC staff have built thousands of assets which have been used millions of times, including bots to automate populating tax return data, workflows to complete status reporting, etc.,” McEneaney told HR Technologist.

She added that “Digital Lab is a democratized platform, which uses social and gamification features to incentivize building and sharing of assets with wide applicability.”

Interestingly, HCL has a similar strategy called IdeapreneurshipOpens a new window , encouraging grassroots innovation across the company’s global workforce.

If you’re eager to implement a similar forum at your company, take a look at a collaboration and idea management software such as CrowdicityOpens a new window or IdeanoteOpens a new window .

3. Certifications/Credentials that are relevant across the board

The credentialsOpens a new window earned through a digital upskilling program must be applicable in the broadest possible context. 

Ideally, employees should be able to carry them forward when they leave your company. And this is precisely what PwC did with its Infinite Learner^TM initiative.

“As with most common credentials, including digital badges offered by other organizations, PwC digital badges travel with the individual who earned them, regardless of if that individual leaves PwC after the badge is earned. They are valid until they expire,” said McEneaney.

PwC offers 12 badges in a diverse range of digital skills, from human-centered design (incidentally, UX design is among the top five skills for 2020) to analytics, artificial intelligence, and data visualization. The digital badge program that turns PwC’s employees into infinite learners is hosted on CredlyOpens a new window .

Several solutions in the market can help kickstart your badges program for corporate learners, including BadgrOpens a new window and OpenBadgesOpens a new window .

Learn More: A Career in Learning and Development: 10 Must-Have Skills to Make It Big in 2020Opens a new window

How PwC Addresses Barriers to Digital Upskilling

But it’s not all smooth sailing – digital upskilling often means overcoming a change-resistant thought process and culture. Before employees can imbibe hands-on hard skills, they must first familiarize themselves with an innovation-friendly and dynamic mindset.

This was among the most significant barriers PwC faced when it invested in digital upskilling, said McEneany. “Citizen-led approaches to upskilling are a culture and mindset shift for many, especially those that are accustomed to more traditional center-led innovation models.”

To address this, PwC took a hybrid approach, balancing collaborative/citizen-led learning on the one hand, with formalized sessions on the other.

Another useful tactic was the use of in-the-moment learningOpens a new window so that busy professionals can find time for digital upskilling.

“There are two ways we have enabled success. First is through offering quarterly ‘Infinite Learning Days’ dedicated to upskilling. Second is by encouraging and supporting people to learn as teams and communities for their in-the-moment learning needs,” she added.

PwC’s digital upskilling program has proved incredibly beneficial for its employees. Take the example of Olive Lappin, who switched to a career in data analytics after 15 years in the life sciences segment, after she had children.

“I wouldn’t for a moment suggest it was an easy journey – returning to work while switching into a different area is challenging and doesn’t happen overnight. Then the inevitable culture shock of working alongside a team of a digitally native younger generation,” Lappin wroteOpens a new window .

“But with the determination to stick to plan, keeping an open mind and most importantly, willingness to reach out for support to refresh and bridge skills gaps, then a whole new area of opportunity opens up,” she added. Lappin’s career transition was aided by PwC’s Data Analytics Academy.

Wrapping Up

For companies looking to stay resilient in the digital era, investing in digital upskilling of their employees may be one of the most significant steps they will have to take. In 2020, it’s time to look inwards, identify and nurture talent from within your company, and prioritize digital upskilling in conjunction with internal hiringOpens a new window .

What do you take away from PwC’s digital upskilling program? Tell us on FacebookOpens a new window , LinkedInOpens a new window , or TwitterOpens a new window . We’d love to hear your views on this topic!