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Improve Your Job Skills Without Spending Money
It is a myth that Learning & Development initiatives necessarily need big budgets and resource allocation. The important agenda is to create a culture of learning and there are multiple initiatives that may be deployed to facilitate learning in organizations. Some of the best ways to improve your job skills without spending money are as mentioned below.
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(A) Self-directed learning
(B) On the Job learning
(C) Learning through feedback
(D) Structured classroom learning
(E) Learning events
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(A) Self-directed learning:
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It is learner-centric and learner-initiated in nature. The focus here is ongoing learning rather than the orchestrated learning “events” that characterize formal classroom training. The vast spectrum of Self-directed learning may be created on technology platform.
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a) E-learning:
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Electronic learning refers to learning and teaching activities through digital methods such as computers and networks, which make full use of the learning environment provided by IT technology with new communication mechanisms and abundant resources to realize a new way of learning. E-learning improves computer skills and communication skills. Learning transcends books and lessons. There are forums, chat rooms, and project groups.
Moreover, E-courses are unrestricted and learning goes beyond specific areas. Therefore, a person can choose to study subjects that are not related to his education or work. One can learn a language or choose to study art history or literature. Since e-learning courses are self-paced, one can avoid the stress of regular courses. Additionally, with e-learning, people can take exams when they are ready, and many courses are an important part of the project’ work.
The world of e-learning has created a new world where learning is timeless and unlimited. E-Learning empowers learners to manage their learning at their convenience. E-Learning enables learners to have access to a wide range of learning modules comprising of both domain and functional knowledge. Certification at the end of the program is a testing event that confirms that the required skills or knowledge have been acquired by the learner.
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b) Online newsletter, journals, and magazine:
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Functional and domain newsletter, journals and magazine provide knowledge around the specific function or domain. The learner can access it at his convenience. Online library provides the learner with a varied option of books, journals and magazine of different discipline to be consumed as per one’s area of interest.
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c) Blogging:
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Blogging in an organization creates a platform for shared learning through discussion and creating discourse. Employees can access and participate in various discussion forums according to their interest.
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d) Online collaborative tools:
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People can also use external online tools and social media like Youtube, TED to name few to learn at their own pace and need.
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e) Organizational “wikis”:
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Such platform offers knowledge of the organization’s processes and practices and is at the disposal of the learner. People can search and access content at their convenience.
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f) Ideation forum:
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An ideation forum on the technology platform gives the opportunity to people to contribute to an organization through their ideas on any issues or business problem. People log in their ideas which can be accessed by the process owner directly. The ideas are evaluated for feasibility and implementation.
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Improve Your Job Skills Without Spending Money
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g) Knowledge Management:
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Knowledge management is the management and planning of knowledge, knowledge creation processes and knowledge applications. Knowledge management generally attaches importance to improving effectiveness, competitive advantage, innovation, knowledge sharing, learning, integration of knowledge and continuous improvement as the goal of enterprises.
We can truly say that the success of the information age depends more and more on the quality of knowledge, whether at the organisation level or individual level, knowledge management is the key to determine competitiveness and development space. KM can become a practice of strategic importance to improve performance and build a culture of innovation in the organization. Technology platform can be used very effectively to create sustainable infrastructure on knowledge management.
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h) Mobile learning:
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Learning through the use of tablets & smartphones by using learning applications can make learning available at all times to the learner. This enables employee to learn while they are on the move and at their convenience.
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i) Role Modelling:
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Here the learner identifies someone he considers an expert of a specific skill. By observing the expert over a period of time and then putting his learning from observation into practice, the learner builds the skillsets.
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Improve Your Job Skills Without Spending Money
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j) Writing:
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Writing develops conceptual thinking. It helps people to develop thinking at “first principle” level. Writing a concept paper, maintaining a journal, diary, writing articles for a newspaper/blog are a few examples by which one can start building the discipline of writing.
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k) External exposure:
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Practice like working with an NGO or going for a field visit to study practices/processes of other organizations can be powerful learning experiences. Such exposures help in broadening perspective & build knowledge and skills. In the above self-directed learning approach, the learner sets implicit learning objectives (which may never be formally articulated), creates and consumes content as per needs, and assesses progress informally against learning objectives.
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(B) On the Job learning:
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The most rounded and holistic development happens through cross-functional exposure and roles. Organizations which advocate fungibility of resources by encouraging and supporting people to take up different assignments are able to develop their people and create competitive advantage in the market place.
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* Job rotation:
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It is a powerful process where the employee gets exposure into different jobs requiring different skill sets. While on the job the employee develops skillset and knowledge to do the job efficiently
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* Special assignments:
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Apart from the current role the employee can be placed in short term special assignments. This gives exposure to different facets of the business and the opportunity to hone one’s skill and competency
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* Cross-functional projects:
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It provides a learning opportunity for the employee to closely work with people from different disciplines and learn from each other.
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* “Show and tell” by manager:
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Learning happens by observing people at work. Here the manager takes responsibility to do a particular task and show. The employee shadows the manager, observes and learns. In some cases, the first few times the employee shadows the manager and then the manager shadows the employee before he is left independent for the job.
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(C) Learning through feedback:
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Feedback is a powerful tool of development. Feedback may be given verbally through conversations or through carefully designed questionnaires that hold a mirror to one’s understanding of self. A culture of powerful conversations go a long way in the development journey of the individual. Conversations may act as a powerful trigger for creating understanding & self-insight, opportunity to shape perspective and influence behaviour change.
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Improve Your Job Skills Without Spending Money
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a) Performance review feedback:
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At a rudimentary level, feedback is popularly understood as performance review feedback. During reviews, the manager gives feedback on the strengths and development areas of the individual based on his/her current and future work context/goals. It is best done by giving critical incident feedback that makes it specific and easy for the employee to relate and understand.
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b) Skip level feedback:
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Skip level feedback is conducted by the skip level manager and is more aimed at having a powerful career conversation. Here the skip level manager acts as a mentor in understanding the employee’s career goals, aspirations and shares his feedback and perspective with the employee to help him achieve his career goals.
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c) Potential feedback:
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Potential feedback conversations focus on skills and competencies required for next level step change roles. These conversations help individual be aware of their development areas which might act as derailer to their professional growth. While performance feedback is more about doing the present job well, potential feedback is making the employee future ready.
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d) Mentoring conversation:
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Mentoring is a development journey where a more seasoned/mature professional (Mentor) — provides guidance and counsel on professional and personal growth areas as may be relevant for the Mentee.
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e) Feedback instruments:
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Feedback instruments like 360-degree feedback may also be used to acquire feedback about one’s behaviour from multiple sources such as peers, direct reports, customers and senior and junior colleagues and this may be contrasted with one’s self-perception. Feedback instruments are akin to a reality check and throw up data on carefully identified behavioural parameters.
360-degree feedback provides a rich source of data on the impact of one’s behaviour on people around them. This helps the employee to modulate his behaviour according to the feedback. 360-degree data can be used to generate insights about organization behaviour and is a rich source of data for leading organizational change and transformation.
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f) Psychometric profilers:
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Psychometric profilers are powerful tools to generate self-insights. These instruments use the knowledge of psychology to help the person generate profound insights into abilities, aptitudes, skills, interests and motivations underlying one’s behaviour. Some examples of such psychometric profilers are – MBTI, 16 PF, FIRO B and OPQ.
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g) Coaching:
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Coaching is conducted by a seasoned coach or practitioner where the Coach is entrusted with the responsibility to facilitate behaviour change over a period of time.
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h) Peer review:
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Peer review provides a safe learning environment. Here team members review each other’s work and give feedback. Team members leverage the strengths of colleagues to enhance overall team performance.
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(D) Structured classroom learning:
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Various learning modules are created and delivered in a Classroom set up to trigger learning with the employees. Both skill-building and perspective building sessions are conducted in a structured Classroom set up. While skill-building requires practice, perspective building is more reflective in nature. The pedagogy of the training usually keep principles of adult learning, learning preferences(Kolb’s model) and learning taxonomy in mind while developing content.
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(E) Learning Events:
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a) Town-halls / Communication Forums:
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Communication forums provide important information to the employees about the organization. It provides holistic view to employees who otherwise work in silos and have limited view at their functional level. Different small and large forums can be conducted to meet specific objective and can provide powerful learning opportunities to employees.
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b) Business reviews:
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Effective reviews can develop people in more than one ways, Reviews can help people diagnose business problems, therefore, performance reviews also need to be positioned as a Learning Opportunity for employees.
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c) Networking and learning from others (peer to peer coaching):
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Internal collaboration forums at various levels foster learning & alignment to organization agenda. The various strategy meets, communication forums and Off-sites are forums where employees learn through discussion and sharing of ideas, all of which add up to individual and group learning.
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d) Multi-disciplinary learning:
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Learning need not come only from the same discipline; it can be drawn from various disciplines and applied to management. People practising different discipline can come together to create a forum to share their experiences for the purpose of learning. People who are into sports, practitioners of music or people from force background to name few, can bring in rich experiences to be shared with people and draw learning from the same.
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e) Book reading event:
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Book reading sessions can be conducted to help people to acquire cognitive/conceptual knowledge. Self-interest groups can come together for such book reading sessions. The forum provides shared learning where people learn from each other to gain a different perspective while reviewing the book.
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f) Learning Videos:
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Videos on different learning themes are used in a group set-up to trigger a discussion and learning from the same. Both specific training videos and movies providing important management lessons can be used in such sessions. Employees are engaged by the facilitator by eliciting opinions and views during the viewing process and using the movie for triggering thoughts which could lead to learning.
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g) Coffee and connect:
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The time and space to listen to employee’s views and suggestions about their work and workplace. These discussion forums give opportunity to build perspective and connect with people. One can also use different learning tools like case-studies and facilitate focused learning from the same.
h) Expert on Call:
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Expert on call is a platform where the employees get an opportunity to engage with different functional / domain experts. The approach can be used where the learners are spread across different locations. A particular topic/theme is identified and discussed at regular intervals.
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i) Road-shows:
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Dissemination of important information, the launch of products and services etc. can be done through roadshows in different locations.
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j) Webinar learning sessions:
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Webinar can be used for learning sessions involving people spread across different locations. It is very useful in organizations having distributed set-up across locations.
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I hope you find the above self-learning methods useful and implement in your professional journey. Good Luck!
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Ref – Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry
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