Why Upskilling Is an Effective Way to Boost Your Fintech Team
In the finance sector, there is a growing need for software professionals who specialize in financial technology, or fintech. Unfortunately, it’s becoming harder and costlier for companies to maintain their fintech workforce. Financial News reports these challenges are exasperated by rising fintech salaries, which spike as much as 25 percent each year.
In addition to staffing challenges, fintech developers need continuous training to maintain relevant skills. This is because artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other innovations are changing what it means to work in tech.
Consider the short-term impact of AI. In 2020, it will add 2.3 million jobs to the labor pool while nixing 1.8 million existing jobs, according to Gartner, an IT research and advisory firm. This will require IT leaders to plan how to fill new AI-related jobs as they phase out obsolete positions. In a tight job market, businesses will be hard pressed to fill these in-demand roles through traditional hiring processes.
Fortunately, upskilling is an effective way for IT leaders to halt their tech erosion and revamp their fintech workforce. Even better, it allows companies to avoid layoffs by preparing current staff to harness emerging technologies.
When you propose upskilling to your team, you may encounter pushback from leadership. However, pushback may be rooted in misconceptions. Armed with facts, you can counter misconceptions by showing how effective upskilling can be.
Misconception 1: It Costs Too Much Time and Money
IT teams have heavy workloads. As a result, some managers think upskilling current developers is more time-consuming and costlier than hiring new ones. But this isn’t always true. Companies can actually save time and money by developing current employees instead of hiring new ones, according to Training Industry Magazine. Even better, upskilling offers a chance to fine-tune nagging inefficiencies. This can help your developers work smarter and make fewer time-consuming mistakes.
To go further, providing learning opportunities is a great way to retain top talent. For instance, 87 percent of millennials consider learning a key aspect of their job, according to Gallup. This makes upskilling more than a way to enhance workforce competencies. It also convinces workers to stay at your company longer, reducing the time and money spent on recruitment.
Misconception: Upskilling costs too much time and money.
The Counter: Upskilling is a fast, cost-effective way to gain and retain top talent. Plus, it can help slash hefty recruiting costs.
Misconception 2: It’s Hard to Determine the Training We Need
Not all fintech developers are trained equally. A team may include a mix of star developers who always deliver and newcomers who need more help. Such variance may lead stakeholders to believe it’s too difficult to account for a team’s diverse training needs. However, a comprehensive skills assessment can do exactly that.
Assessments map individual abilities and the competencies needed to fulfill changing business needs. Plus, assessments can spot more than skills gaps. They can also spot behavior gaps, such as ineffective work routines. Assessments provide insights to design training that delivers new skills and boosts productivity.
Misconception: It’s hard to determine the training we need.
The counter: Comprehensive skills assessments can pinpoint skills gaps and behavior gaps for us to close during training. This helps us create a more skilled, more efficient team.
Misconception 3: Our Team Is Too Decentralized to Train Everyone Together
Technology allows employees to work from anywhere with internet access. If developers on your team work remotely, stakeholders may think it’s too hard to provide a unified learning experience. Of course, technology enables developers to do more than work at home. They can train there, too.
Customizing online and blended learning programs is second-nature for modern corporate training providers. Video conferencing is now seamless—remote employees can train virtually with in-office coworkers. This allows your entire team to take part in a uniform training, no matter where they are. If training focuses on active learning, work-from-home and in-office developers can collaborate during exercises. This approach can bolster teamwork and problem-solving skills.
Misconception: Our team is too decentralized to train everyone together.
The counter: Integrating online learning allows us to deliver unified training to in-office and remote developers. At the same time, we can enhance collaboration by creating an active learning experience.
What to Look for in a Training Partner
Convincing stakeholders that upskilling delivers top talent is only one piece of the puzzle. You also need an effective training partner. As you begin your search, make sure candidates can:
- Capture Accurate Workforce Insights
As we’ve shown here, using a comprehensive skills assessment to measure developer abilities is essential. This process gathers the data needed to design an effective upskilling program. - Customize Training for Your Business Goals
Effective training partners don’t use canned curriculum to solve your skills deficiencies. They learn your business goals to customize a learning experience that prepares your developers to achieve them. - Integrate Training Into Project Workflows
Training should provide impactful skills and avoid impacting project timelines. It’s essential for your partner to build a training schedule that allows developers to learn new tricks while fulfilling customer requirements. - Future-proof Your Workforce
As technology evolves, your best developers will want to evolve with it. This creates a retention opportunity for your company. Your partner should create a continuous development plan that keeps developers on the forefront of technology and committed to your business.
The Bottom Line
Despite common misconceptions, upskilling is a fast, cost-effective way to build a futureproof team of fintech developers.