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The Future of Work

With the changes thrust upon the workforce by the COVID-19 pandemic, there is even more discussion than usual around what the future of work will look like. Atlassian work futurist, Dominic Price, suggests that it is a fallacy to try and predict the future of work. Instead, he suggests that a better investment of time and energy is to try and ‘unlearn’ habits that we have built in the past. Given our current environment, we would agree that that makes a lot of sense.

As an interesting aside – Dominic actually made those comments in an interview with Business Insider Australia in October last year. Yes, that’s right. Back in 2019 before coronavirus had made an impact.

But back to present. A fitting example of the unlearning that has been happening across the country, has been the rapid move to remote working. Organisations have had to put aside previously any held beliefs that working from home simply couldn’t or wouldn’t work.

Faced with a choice of work from home or do not work at all, people were up and running from home in a short space of time. With their regular routines and existing office habits no longer relevant, people now had the ‘space’ to learn, and even create, new ways working. As people’s skills evolved, so did the organisations they worked for, creating a continual learning loop.

We have talked previously about the ability of a learning organisation to adapt more quickly to unpredictable and every-changing environments than their competitors and how individuals must also understand and value lifelong learning. This is something that most work futurists agree on -that our future won’t be about working or learning – it will be about both.

It is in this context of continual learning that micro-credentialing and just-in-time learning come to the fore. Micro-credentials describe learning that is delivered in bite-sized chunks. Mini-qualifications that enable an individual to gain – and illustrate – proficiency in a particular skill. Micro-credentials are a quick way to upskill without having to invest time or money in a long-term course. Crucially, micro-credentials can respond to the nuanced needs of different industry sectors.

In contrast, just-in-time learning generally refers to workplace provided, on demand learning resources needed for a specific task or problem. The learning is easily digestible, meaning it can be immediately applied or actioned. Minimising employee down time and frustration, and upskilling at the same time.

Whilst we cannot predict the future, what we can say with confidence is that our organisations and workplaces will continue to change and evolve; sometimes faster, sometimes slower, but always evolving. Our job, as managers and leaders, is to ensure that our teams have the learning and skills they need to deliver on their jobs to the best of their ability.

 

ASC Training & Development delivers a range of management and leadership courses focused on developing and strengthening the skills needed to thrive in a leadership role. The programs are suitable for range of skill levels, from experienced leaders to those aspiring to leadership and management roles. Many of our programs are offered as live virtual classrooms.

Further information can be found on our website or feel free to give us a call to discuss your specific needs.