In a rapidly evolving job market, an employer must decide whether to hire new talent with emerging skills or upskill their team. Both approaches help future-proof the company’s workforce.
Hiring new talent brings fresh ideas and skills to your workforce. However, upskilling your team supports a culture of continuous learning. Therefore, understanding whether hiring new talent or upskilling your team would be more beneficial is essential.
Implement these tips to determine whether to hire new talent or upskill your team to future-proof your workforce.
Benefits of Hiring New Talent
The benefits of hiring new talent include:
- Filling skill gaps: Hiring new talent with specialized skills elevates project development and adaptation to new markets.
- Adding new skills and ideas: New talent brings diverse abilities and perspectives for increased creativity and innovation.
- Increasing growth potential: New talent can grow with your business and develop into leaders.
- Elevating cost-effectiveness: Hiring entry-level talent who recently completed reskilling programs can cost less than upskilling current team members with higher salaries.
Benefits of Upskilling Your Team
The benefits of upskilling your team include:
- Aligning skills with business needs: Upskilling enhances your team’s skills to align with the changing demands of their roles and your business to improve performance.
- Rapidly implementing new skills: Team members can quickly apply new skills to their existing work.
- Retaining institutional knowledge: Long-term team members understand and can share your company’s unique culture and processes.
- Creating a culture of learning: Developing your team’s skills encourages continuous learning and adaptability and prepares your team for future technological advancements.
- Elevating employee morale: Adding to employees’ skill sets helps your team better perform their work and provides more value to the organization.
- Increasing cost-effectiveness: Upskilling your team often costs less than hiring new talent.
Tips to Choose Between Hiring New Talent and Upskilling Your Team
Implement these tips to choose between hiring new talent and upskilling your team:
Evaluate your team’s current skill sets and your business’s future needs
Consider your team’s strengths and weaknesses, skills gaps for upcoming projects and long-term goals, and tools and technologies to succeed in your market and industry. If your team resists upskilling, consider hiring new talent with the necessary skills. If your team is open to upskilling, consider looking for relevant training opportunities.
Consider your company’s culture and employee morale
Hiring new talent brings fresh ideas and viewpoints that inspire thinking and working in new ways. However, your team might feel they are incapable of adjusting to change and could be replaced in the future.
In contrast, upskilling can elevate job satisfaction and employee loyalty. Therefore, consider the message you want to send your team when making hiring or upskilling decisions.
Evaluate the time and cost implications
Recruiting, onboarding, and training new talent requires significant time and money. However, upskilling your team requires substantial time and money to complete training programs, apply new skills, and see results. Therefore, consider your timeline and budget when choosing between hiring and upskilling.
Would You Like Help Future-Proofing Your Workforce?
Corps Team can source candidates with cutting-edge skills and offer solutions to develop your existing workforce. Reach out to discuss your unique business needs today.
