AIMS International Albania & Kosovo, with the support of RisiAlbania, a project of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) conducted the research ‘Upskilling and reskilling in the New Normal’, during December 2020. This is the first survey run in Albania with focus on COVID-19 impact in workforce. The study was publicly presented on February 10th, during an online webinar with participants from different business sectors, training providers, development experts and other stakeholders.

FULL VIDEO WITH FINDINGS

The main purpose of the study, first of its kind in Albania, is to explore the impact of the pandemic on businesses in Albania and what were the most required skills during this global challenge. Moreover, if focuses on new skills required from employees of all levels and new job categories emerging in Albania.

The report provides in-depth information about 6 industry groups with the highest employability potential for young people in Albania namely: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO); Banking/Financial Services; Software Development/IT Solutions; Marketing/Digital/Web; Retail/Trade/; Real Estate; Hospitality/Tourism and other. It also outlines a series of practical recommendations on how business leaders can make the right strategic plans regarding further development of the human capital.

Participants of this survey are on the frontlines of business decision-making regarding human capital with highly valid data to create a clearer picture of both the current situation and the outlook for jobs and skills.

Upskilling and reskilling in the Albanian realm

As the study shows, rapid pace of business and technological changes during pandemic, have put upskilling/reskilling programs in the center of all industries in Albania. To sustain their business, mobilizing internal talent was identified as most effective solution, with 44 % of participants claiming they planed upskilling their workforce, and third of them (32 %) reskilling.

The most important skills needed to develop, during pandemic for managers and seniors are adaptability/ resilience and communication/collaboration. For graduate level, the most important skills are customer focus and team spirit.

The future of remote work: Will remote work stay in Albanian companies post-COVID?

Trends indicate that remote working is here to stay. More than half of the companies (51 %) are embracing a hybrid working style and 16.5 % are operating full remote. The challenge ahead for L&D is to precisely identify workforce skills needed and design effective upskilling programs.

Unsurprisingly, most businesses in Albania have invested in digital transformation. Some had started prior pandemics (Banking, BPO, ICT) but for some others the pandemics has just accelerated the digitalization process.

When focusing on sector specific findings, the study shows that Hospitality/tourism has been the most negatively affected industry by Covid-19, while BPO sector had the highest rate of external hiring during the pandemic. These findings can be used as a guide by leaders, to draft strategic plans for Human Resource management; L&D professionals, to design effective development programs as well as individuals, for the purpose of self-development.

Full study can be accessed here