Career Advice
How To Drive Your Own Learning and Development While Remote Working
Glassdoor Team
Glassdoor Team | Author & Career Expert at Glassdoor | 3 June 2020
Workplace learning and development is key to strengthening your skills so you can do your job better and progress in your career quickly. Shifting from working in the office to remote working doesn't mean you should slow down or pause your learning and development.In fact, it could be a good time to step it up.
Businesses are changing and adapting to the new working environment. Restructuring of teams may be on the table for some, and managers will be keen to keep hold of employees who they think add value.
Plus, with remote working set to continue for the foreseeable future and some companies choosing to ditch the office structure altogether, remote learning and development could become the norm. So here are some tips on how to be successful at it:
Discover what your employer has in place
In the first instance check with your employer to see what (if any) programs they have in place. If they already embrace remote working, they may have a system for remote learning and development set up. If remote working is new to them, they or their training provider may be working hard to bring their learning and development programs online.
Speak to your immediate manager or HR department to find out how you access the programs and how it's taught. It could be employer-led where your employer either on their own or in conjunction with a training provider sets out the agenda with training typically being delivered by instructors. It may be employee-led, which includes on-the-job training and training from peers.Or, it could be a mixture of both - which tends to achieve the best results.
Seek guidance from a mentor
Working with a mentor can help you develop in ways that a structured learning and development program can't. For instance, a mentor could support you in developing your soft skills such as self-motivation, leadership or decisiveness - all of which are highly valued by employers. And, mentors are often central in helping to grow your professional network which can be key in advancing your career.
Your employer may have a mentorship program already established - where you're matched with a respected and valued senior leader within the company.
If your workplace doesn't have a mentorship program in place, or you don't want to go down that route, some professional organizations and universities also offer mentoring programs.
Related [ How To Ask Someone To Be Your Mentor ]
Share ideas with your peers
In the absence of in-person seminars and conferences, virtual meetups are becoming an easy way to connect with peers. LinkedIn, skill or industry-specific Facebook groups and event platforms like Eventbrite and Meetup are a treasure-trove of virtual meetups. Search to see what is available, who is delivering the training, what's covered and whether there's a cost involved.
On the flip-side, how about becoming a trainer yourself? It's a great opportunity to establish your reputation while offering support and sharing your knowledge with others. Plus, if you're going for a promotion or for a new role that involves managing or leading a team, you can demonstrate that you have an understanding and experience of delivering learning and development programs.
Related [ How To Get A Promotion ]
If you're interested in connecting with others who have a similar interest to you or who have similar jobs, Slack channels or communities as they're also known are a fantastic source of support and information. Plus they give you the opportunity to network with professionals from across the world without leaving your room. The beauty is that you can find a Slack channel that caters for every interest, such as python coding through to entrepreneurship.
Gain a professional qualification
As a member of a professional organization, you may have access to industry-specific learning and development. This could involve access to webinars or online seminars through to studying online for a professional qualification or degree.
Most professional organizations and bodies offer this type of learning at a discounted rate for its members. Some are offering partial access to their courses for free as support to their members during the pandemic.
Having a professional qualification that's gained from a recognized institution or organization, will make your CV stand out to recruiters or hiring managers. So, if you're thinking of upskilling, now could be the perfect time to do it!
Related [ How To Write A CV ]
Take a strategic approach to your learning and development
Taking a strategic approach to your own learning and development is vital to achieving your career goals. Failing to put time aside for training could place you behind your colleagues and make you less attractive to recruiters and hiring managers when going for a promotion applying for a job at a different company.
Working remotely, you may be faced with more distractions than you would be if you were office-based. Here are some things to consider to get the most out of your own learning and development:
- To determine the direction you want to take with your learning and development, decide what it is you want to achieve from it. It could be you want to become qualified in a specific software? Or, you want to acquire problem solving skills so you can take the lead on projects?
- Set yourself a realistic schedule: When setting your learning and development goals take into account other demands on your time, such as work, family commitments or volunteering. Work out realistically what you can accomplish each week or month and put together a quarterly plan.
- Seek out opportunities to use your new skills - this doesn't necessarily have to be at work. For instance, you could take on a volunteering role or start a side-project where you can put your new knowledge or skills into practice.
- Conduct regular reviews of your learning and development to determine if it's delivering on the goals you set yourself at the start. If it's not, go back to your employer or seek advice from your mentor or peers on what to change.
Glassdoor Team
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Tags:COVID-19Personal Development
