07 Oct A Mobility Strategist’s Guide to Upskilling Workers, Assignees

Global mobility specialists, picture this: your hire spent years mastering their job — compliance officer, assembly-line supervisor, technical writer, QA debugger, lighting tech. You know your tasks so well that you’ve joked, “A computer could do this.” Then one day, the boss confirms it. Automation will take over parts of their work — and they are asked to help design the system that replaces them.

After the shock fades, you learn that your company isn’t just eliminating jobs; it’s creating an upskilling program to retrain employees for new, higher-value roles. The plan uses workforce analytics to match people whose jobs are at risk with emerging digital opportunities — and the training to fill them. They commit to 15 weeks of intensive learning. It’s tough, but a counselor guides them through it. By week seven, they are meeting with HR about onboarding into a new position. They start on trial, then convert to full-time. Their benefits stay intact, their pay grows, and they’re proof that upskilling can turn disruption into renewal.

Two trends are reshaping the U.S. labor market: automation and a widening digital skills gap. Millions of workers are watching their roles become obsolete while tech-driven jobs go unfilled. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development estimates that nearly half of all U.S. jobs could be automated or significantly changed. Yet positions in artificial intelligence, data analytics, and cybersecurity are multiplying faster than companies can hire. Software-related jobs alone have been growing at roughly 6.5 percent annually — almost twice the national average.

This mismatch — surplus in yesterday’s jobs and shortage in tomorrow’s — has made upskilling one of the most urgent business priorities of the decade.

Upskilling isn’t the same as reskilling. Reskilling is short-term and reactive, designed for workers who’ve already lost their jobs. Upskilling is proactive and strategic — it helps employees build new capabilities before disruption hits. It’s not “take a course.” It’s “prepare for this new role, and we’ll invest in you to get there.”

Why business leaders are acting now

Once considered a luxury, upskilling has become a survival strategy. It’s not only about social responsibility — it’s about growth. In PwC’s 22nd Annual Global CEO Survey, 79 percent of U.S. CEOs ranked the shortage of skilled talent among their top three concerns, and 46 percent said upskilling is their preferred solution.

Training programs also boost retention, morale, and innovation. They create loyalty and internal mobility — two factors that reduce the costly cycle of layoffs and rehires. As one HR leader put it, “You can’t hire your way into the future anymore; you have to build it.”

And it’s not just about technical expertise. The most successful programs teach learning agility — the ability to adapt, collaborate, and keep evolving. As roles become more dynamic, soft skills such as communication and leadership are what enable workers to stay relevant.

Cost, but also return

Yes, upskilling costs money. The World Economic Forum estimates that retraining a U.S. worker can cost $24,800. For high-tech fields, that’s realistic. But it’s cheaper than layoffs. Severance packages, recruitment fees, lost productivity, and onboarding costs can easily exceed that number — and you still lose institutional knowledge.

Upskilling, by contrast, turns that expense into an investment. A company doesn’t have to retrain everyone at once — targeting just 10 percent of the workforce each year can transform nearly half the company within five years.

Communities benefit too. Skills mismatches lower GDP and tax revenue while raising unemployment costs. Public–private partnerships can share the load through tax incentives, workforce grants, and regional training hubs. When workers are treated as appreciating assets, the payoff multiplies.

What effective upskilling looks like

A successful program starts with honesty. Which jobs are most exposed to automation in the next two years? Which skills are most in demand? The next step is partnership: leaders, HR heads, and educators align on goals, timelines, and measurable outcomes.

Training design must focus on real roles, not abstract topics. Modern upskilling blends three elements:

• Technical depth: training for roles like cybersecurity analyst or automation specialist.
• Practical learning: hands-on projects tied to actual business tools and data.
• Soft-skill growth: communication, collaboration, and adaptability built into every module.

Technology makes this scalable. Digital platforms can assess employee readiness, recommend courses, and track progress. Gamified learning apps keep workers engaged while AI-driven systems match them to future job openings inside the company.

The best programs also create psychological safety. Employees need assurance that their data is private and that participation won’t jeopardize their current roles. Transparent communication, coaching, and peer support groups all reinforce that trust.

How to begin

Start small but think big. Identify at-risk roles and build pilot programs around them. Measure not only skill acquisition but job placement and retention. Celebrate early wins publicly to build momentum.

One U.S. example: PwC’s Digital Fitness app lets employees self-assess their fluency in automation, analytics, and AI, then follow a personalized learning plan. It rewards employees for building internal tools and sharing knowledge — making learning contagious.

The long game

Upskilling isn’t a perk; it’s the new engine of competitiveness. Many American workers were educated in an era when the internet was young and lifelong careers were stable. That world is gone. In the digital economy, the ability to learn fast is the ultimate job security.

Research by Carol Dweck on “growth mindset” shows that adults can learn complex skills at any age — and that believing in one’s capacity to learn actually improves performance. The real obstacle isn’t human capability. It’s leadership imagination.

Leaders who bet on their people will win the future. Those who don’t will watch talent — and opportunity — move elsewhere. Upskilling isn’t just about keeping up with change. It’s about leading it.