How to upskill employees: 12 Strategies for a future-ready workforce

UK employers judged 1.26 million employees to have skills gaps in 2024, according to the Department for Education’s Employer Skills Survey. As AI changes everyday work, organisations need to help people build the skills their roles now require. 

In our Annual Business Trends Report 2026, skills gaps rank as the second-biggest challenge for UK organisations, while talent development ranks tenth among priorities. Hiring can help, but developing existing employees gives organisations another way to meet changing needs. This guide covers 12 practical upskilling strategies.

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What does it mean to upskill employees?

Upskilling helps an employee build skills for their current role. A finance professional might learn to use data analytics, for example, while a customer service adviser might learn to use an AI tool in their daily work. 

Upskilling prepares someone for a different role, such as a payroll administrator training to become a data analyst.

Dimension	Upskilling	Reskilling
Definition	Deepening or expanding skills within the current role	Training employees to move into an entirely different role
Trigger	Evolving technology, new processes, role expansion	Automation, restructuring, business model change
Examples	A financial analyst learning AI-powered forecasting tools	An Administrator retrained as a data technician
Outcome	Improved performance and retention in current role	Internal redeployment, reduced redundancy risk

Organisations may need both approaches. The 12 strategies in this guide focus on upskilling. 

Why upskilling employees matters in 2026

The Employer Skills Survey 2024 estimated that UK employers judged 1.26 million employees not fully proficient in their roles. It also found that 27% of vacancies were hard to fill because applicants lacked the right skills, qualifications or experience. 

The longer-term cost is less certain. A 2019 study commissioned by the Local Government Association modelled around £120 billion of economic output at risk in England in 2030 if projected skills shortages went unaddressed. That is a scenario, not a loss already incurred. 

AI is adding to the need for training. In January 2026, the UK government raised its AI upskilling ambition from 7.5 million to 10 million workers by 2030. 

OneAdvanced’s Annual Trends Report 2026 found that AI was the top investment priority, while training and development ranked tenth. Giving employees time to learn and practise new skills helps organisations make better use of the technology they invest in.

12 Strategies to upskill employees

1. Conduct a skills gap analysis 

Start by finding out which skills your people use today and which ones their roles will need next. In the Employer Skills Survey 2024, 12% of UK employers reported at least one employee who was not fully proficient in their role. The figure does not tell you where the gaps are in your own organisation. 

Compare employees’ current skills with their roles now and the changes you expect over the next one to three years. Draw on performance reviews, measures of work quality, employee self-assessments, manager feedback and succession plans. Ask employees which skills they want to develop, then use the gaps you find to focus your training budget.  

2. Set specific upskilling objectives 

Different roles need different skills. Agree what each employee needs to learn, how they will practise and how you will know they can use the skill at work. 

Make objectives SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound). For example: “By the end of the quarter, each accounts payable team member will be able to process a standard invoice in the new system without help, following the agreed checks.” Review progress during regular check-ins. 

Performance & Talent supports development objectives and links individual goals to organisational priorities. 

3. Build a culture of continuous learning 

Access to courses is a start. People also need time to practise, opportunities to share what they learn and feedback they can use. Managers can help by asking questions, recognising progress and making it comfortable to say, “I don’t know how to do that yet.” 

At OneAdvanced, curious is one of our values. We encourage people to challenge assumptions and explore ideas that could improve how we work for customers. 

4. Link skills to career progression 

Show employees where learning could take them. A career plan can set out the skills, experience and milestones needed for their next step. Make room for different ambitions: one person may want to deepen their expertise, while another may want to lead a team or move into a different function. 

Discuss these paths in development conversations and revisit them as opportunities change. They can help employees choose useful learning and help managers plan for future roles. 

5. Use HR technology and AI tools 

An HR software can give managers a shared view of employees’ skills, learning goals and progress, including across different locations. Use performance reviews, project outcomes and self-assessments to see where people are developing and where they may need more support. 

AI tools may help identify patterns in that information. Check their suggestions with employees and managers before making decisions about someone’s development, and handle employee data in line with your organisation’s policies. 

6. Invest in a learning platform 

Choose a platform that fits how your people work. Short, role-relevant modules that employees can use on a phone or computer make learning easier to fit around their day. Clear learning paths and progress tracking help them see what to do next. 

Give people time to practise what they learn and opportunities to discuss it with colleagues. Completing a course is useful; applying the skill at work is the goal. 

7. Encourage peer learning and mentoring 

Give employees opportunities to learn from colleagues. Short knowledge-sharing sessions, internal workshops, job shadowing and mentoring can help people share expertise across teams. 

Match people around what they want to learn and what they can teach. An experienced colleague might explain how to handle a difficult customer conversation, while someone new to the team might share a different approach to a familiar task. Agree a purpose and make time for both people to take part. 

8. Create individual employee development plans 

A development plan turns an employee’s career goals into agreed actions. Set out the skills they want to build, how they will learn and when you will review progress. Activities might include training, mentoring, a project that stretches their skills or time working in another team. 

Write the plan together, with HR input where needed. Agree what the employee will do, what support the manager will provide and how they will demonstrate their new skills. Revisit the plan during check-ins and update it as goals or priorities change. 

Employee development plan: step by step 

Use these steps to turn career goals into practical learning actions: 

1. Agree the goal: discuss what the employee wants to work towards and the skills they will need. 
2. Identify the gaps: use the skills gap analysis to compare their current skills with those needed. 
3. Choose learning activities: start with one activity for each gap. Agree who owns it, when it is due and how you will measure progress. 
4. Check resources: ask HR to confirm the budget, available programmes and any links to succession plans. 
5. Review and update: discuss progress at a quarterly check-in and adjust the plan when goals or priorities change. 

Example plan for a team leader (illustrative): 

Skill gap	Activity	Owner	Date	Measure
Giving feedback	Manager training course, then practise in monthly one-to-ones	Employee; manager books course	End of Q1	Team survey score on feedback improves
Workforce planning	Shadow the operations manager	Employee and operations manager	End of Q2	Builds next quarter's rota without support
Budget management	Take on the team's training budget	Manager to delegate	End of Q3	Year-end spend within 2% of budget

Development plans can also inform succession planning by showing who is building skills for future roles. 

9. Include on-the-job training 

Give employees opportunities to apply new skills to real work. They could shadow a colleague, take on a project that stretches their skills or spend time working in another team. 

Agree what they will learn, who will support them and when they will receive feedback. Afterwards, discuss what went well and where they need more practice. Depending on the activity, this could include technical skills, communication or problem-solving. 

10. Make time for learning 

Learning can slip when deadlines and daily workloads take over. Agree time for development and plan workloads so employees can use it. 

Schedule learning sessions, include development in regular check-ins and provide flexible options for people working shifts or variable hours. Managers should protect that time and help employees rearrange it when urgent work intervenes. 

11. Plan how people will use what they learn 

Agree how employees will apply new skills at work. This could mean leading a project, improving a process or taking on a task with support from a colleague. 

Record the activity, the support needed and what successful application will look like. Arrange follow-ups, for example after 30, 60 and 90 days, to discuss progress, give feedback and identify where more practice is needed. 

12. Measure and report progress 

Agree what success looks like before training starts. Record a baseline, set targets that fit the programme and review whether employees are applying their skills at work. 

These measures are a starting point: 

Metric	How to measure	What to look for
Training completion	Completed courses as a proportion of assigned courses	The agreed completion target met by the deadline
Skills improvement	Comparable assessments and practical tasks before and after training	Employees demonstrate the required skill to the agreed standard
Employee engagement	Consistent pulse-survey questions before and after the programme	Changes in employees’ views of development and support
Internal progression	Promotions and internal moves among participants	Progress against career goals and available opportunities
Time to competence	Time taken to meet an agreed performance standard	Reduced learning time while maintaining quality
Retention	Twelve-month turnover among participants	Differences compared with employees in similar roles and with similar tenure
Business impact	Relevant output, error rates or customer measures	Progress against the programme’s business objectives

Review the results alongside changes in workloads, systems and staffing. An improvement after training does not, by itself, show that training caused it. 

For more, see our guide to staff training and development.

Upskilling in the age of AI 

Start by identifying the AI skills each role needs. Employees may need to learn how to use approved tools, check outputs, protect sensitive information and recognise when human judgement is needed. 

In CV Genius’s 2025 survey of 1,000 UK employees, 91% believed AI would require continued upskilling and learning to stay competitive. The government’s AI Skills Boost programme now aims to upskill ten million UK workers by 2030. 

Combine accessible online learning with practice and support. AI-assisted learning tools may help suggest relevant content, but check recommendations against the employee’s role and development goals. Provide alternatives for people who need a different format or help getting started. 

Benefits of upskilling employees Better retention 

The OneAdvanced Annual Trends Report 2026 found skills and talent gaps among the top challenges for UK organisations. Employees without development opportunities are more likely to leave, so investing in upskilling supports satisfaction, engagement and retention. 

Development opportunities can give employees a reason to see their future within the organisation. The OneAdvanced Annual Trends Report 2026 found connecting learning with career conversations and opportunities to use new skills, can help bridge the talent gap UK organisations are facing. 

Higher productivity 

Training can help employees complete tasks more accurately and use new tools with greater confidence. Measure improvements through relevant work outcomes, such as fewer invoice errors, less rework or shorter processing times. 

New ideas 

Give employees opportunities to question existing processes and test what they have learned. A new skill may help someone spot a recurring problem or suggest a better way to complete a task. 

Lower workforce costs 

Developing existing employees can reduce the need for external recruitment. Compare training costs, learning time and workload cover with the costs of hiring and bringing someone into the role. 

Research published by the Financial Services Skills Commission and PwC UK in 2022 estimated average reskilling costs of £31,800 per employee, compared with £80,900 for redundancy and rehiring. The £49,100 difference relates to financial-services reskilling; use your own costs when assessing an upskilling programme. 

Better customer service 

Role-specific training can help your workforce explain information clearly, resolve problems and recognise when to ask for specialist support. Check the effect through measures such as resolution times, repeat contacts, complaints and customer feedback. 

The ROI of employee upskilling 

Build the business case around your organisation’s costs and the improvements you expect to achieve. 

The wider economic estimates need care. A 2019 study commissioned by the LGA put around £120 billion of economic output at risk in England in 2030 if projected skills shortages went unaddressed. This provides context for investment, rather than a measure of your programme’s return. 

Use this framework to assess your own programme: 

• Costs: include course fees, platforms, employee learning time, manager support and workload cover. Compare internal development with external recruitment where both could meet the same need. 
• Productivity: measure changes in output, quality or processing time. Where possible, compare similar teams and account for other changes affecting performance. 
• Retention: track turnover among participants and estimate any reduction in replacement costs, using comparable roles and periods. 
• Capability: monitor internal appointments and whether employees meet the skills standards needed for those roles. 

How OneAdvanced upskills its own people 

OneAdvanced introduced SkillsHub to give employees access to learning beyond mandatory training. Its 2025 CIPD People Management Awards profile reported that 51% of employees had completed non-mandatory courses. 

That gives a concrete measure of learning participation. Skills assessments and evidence of application at work can then help organisations understand what employees gained from that learning. 

Conclusion 

Start with the skills your organisation needs, agree development goals with employees and protect time for learning and practice. Use the 12 strategies in this guide to build your programme, then review progress at the next quarterly check-in. 

Speak to a OneAdvanced expert about supporting your upskilling programme. Book a demo. 

Frequently asked questions 

What is the difference between upskilling and reskilling? 

Upskilling focuses on expanding skills within an employee's current role. Reskilling involves training employees to take on entirely new roles, typically in response to automation, restructuring, or business model change. 

How do you identify which employees need upskilling? 

Start with a skills gap analysis that compares current skills with role requirements and future needs. Performance reviews, self-assessments, competency frameworks and reports from your HR system all help. 

What is the most effective way to upskill employees? 

Combine methods: structured courses, on-the-job learning, peer learning and personalised learning paths, each linked to business objectives and individual career goals. 

How can small businesses afford to upskill employees? 

Employers can fund apprenticeship training through the Growth and Skills Levy; smaller employers that don't pay the levy can get most of the cost of apprenticeship training paid by government. Peer learning, online platforms and short e-learning modules are low-cost options too. 

How do I measure the ROI of an upskilling programme? 

Track metrics including training completion rates, skills acquisition scores, retention rates in upskilled cohorts, internal promotion rates, and business performance improvements linked to programme objectives. Compare the cost of the programme against the cost of external hiring and turnover to build a clear financial case.