As technology advances, the future of work isn’t just changing; it’s transforming, driven by shifting workforce expectations and business models. Automation, artificial intelligence, and digital transformation are redefining job roles, making upskilling, reskilling, and continuous learning essential for workforce sustainability.

Future-proofing the workforce goes beyond addressing skill shortages; it involves building a culture of continuous learning that ensures employees grow within the organization. When companies consciously invest in growing their own people, they don’t just retain knowledge. They build a workforce that understands the organization from the inside out, and is far more aligned, adaptable, and future-ready.

The changing workforce landscape

For decades, career development in most industries has followed a linear path, where professionals built deep expertise in a single function and progressed within that domain. Today, that is no longer the norm. Now, opportunities are proactively requested by the workforce to assist learning, acquire new skills, shift roles, or learn something outside their function. This curiosity is healthy, and organizations need to create space for it. Being future-ready means companies must create a continuous learning culture that extends beyond corporate training to include offerings such as online courses, mentorship, and real-world experiences. When people can learn, grow and evolve within a company, it not only strengthens their careers but also creates organizational resilience that simply cannot be acquired from the outside.

The power of upskilling and reskilling for the future

Upskilling enhances employees' existing skills to keep pace with industry advancements, allowing them to take on expanded responsibilities within the organization. This reduces training costs, retains company knowledge, and supports internal mobility. A pulse survey by RGP found that nearly 45% of financial decision-makers plan to increase investment in resources to reskill or upskill current employees this year. Similarly, a World Economic Forum study found that 58% of employees believe their job skills will change significantly over the next five years due to AI and big data.

Reskilling, on the other hand, prepares employees for new roles when automation or business shifts make existing ones redundant. CHROs must anticipate these changes and collaborate with universities and online course providers to offer accredited training programs. Research shows that reskilling works best when paired with visible support. Therefore, to encourage a mentoring culture at Marico, we have an effective Grow with Members program that pairs leaders with teams.

Continuous Learning: Embedding a learning mindset

Past learnings prove that a one-time upskilling or reskilling initiative is not enough. To stay competitive, organizations must cultivate a culture of progress that encourages employees to develop new skills throughout their careers. They need to ensure that the leadership champions continuous learning as a strategic priority. It also means creating simple, everyday access to learning programmes, whether through digital platforms, internal knowledge hubs, or peer-led sessions that embed development into the workflow. Implementing incentives, such as certifications or rewards for skill development, will be beneficial.

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