When coaching people who have been made redundant from their jobs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the things I keep encouraging everyone to become familiar with is the process of ‘unlearning and redeveloping’ (U&R) themselves. At first, people find it puzzling to think they should ‘unlearn’ anything they have learned in the past because they worked in so and so multinational with astounding brand name. However, once people are asked enough questions to look deep into how they can evolve out of difficult circumstances and take the opportunity to bounce back stronger, there is a whole new meaning to the term ‘unlearning and redevelopment’.

Traditional Learning and Development (L&D) and its Limitations

But before I talk about what ‘unlearning and redevelopment’ is about, let us revisit what ‘learning and development’ (L&D) means to some human resources experts. According to HR experts at HR Technologist, Learning and Development is defined as: “A specialized HR function, learning and development (L&D) is defined as the process of empowering employees with specific skills to drive better business performance.”

Unlearning and Redeveloping is the process of personal growth and evolution by acquiring new skills and resigning old skills or methods of implementing them that no longer suit your current or future career goals.

Shuja Rabbani – SHRM-SCP, SPHRI, EXECUTIVE COACH – JOHN MAXWELL TEAM

On the onset, L&D sounds like a great idea for any business to have if they wish to drive performance. The blind spot of having internally based L&D departments, however, is that most companies provide limited resources and capabilities for employees because the focus is more on meeting internal skills shortages than building externally transferrable skills. The skills set that are provided as part of standard training programs are designed to keep employees competent at specific skills for a particular job based on the functions of their role as prescribed on the job description. Such acquisition of skills based on canned L&D programs becomes increasingly risky in cases where employees have not changed jobs often or enough times where they have been exposed to different styles of work and skills requirements.

What is ‘Unlearning and Redevelopment’ (U&R)?

In simple terms, U&R is the process of personal growth and evolution by acquiring new skills and resigning old skills or methods of implementing them that no longer suit your current or future career goals. For this to happen, one would have to make an intentional effort in making sure they are constantly assessing their skills and their value in the jobs they wish to apply for in the future.

Whether it is simply a change of jobs or change of career paths, relying on skills learned and their transferability to the future career goals of an individual means the individual will have to constantly have their thumb on the pulse to make sure they are quickly able to adapt when crisis hits and have enough in their skills toolbox to be able to transition smoothly into new roles and career paths.

For example, customer service and interpersonal relationships is a universal skill. In the digital age we are in now, having good telephone manners, smiling, and ability to resolve issues quickly and effectively are not enough.

• You would need to be prepared to assist customers in the event that a company’s mobile application is having technical difficulties and they are reaching out for help.
• You would also need to be able to write professionally should you be required to reach out to customers and help them troubleshoot.
• Are you familiar enough and well-versed with some of the main video calling software in the event that you need to assist a customer resolve their issues remotely?

In conclusion, the importance of U&R cannot be undermined because it is an ongoing process of personal growth and development that helps keep you employable in any job market.

Is your team in need of acquiring new skills? Coaching? Leadership development? Reach out to me for a consultation using the ‘booking’ tab above. Listen to the latest episodes of my podcast below.