One of the biggest challenges for organisations across ASEAN today is upskilling their employees to close critical skills gaps and create a more agile workforce, according to a report from Workday.
The report is based on research conducted by McCrindle, involving a survey of 1,515 business leaders and HR professionals in large companies across the Asia-Pacific and Japan (APJ) region, including 252 respondents across four ASEAN markets: Singapore (101), Malaysia (49), Thailand (50), and Indonesia (52).
Findings revealed that more than one-third (38%) of respondents reported employee upskilling as a top challenge for their organisation, with a similar portion (38%) citing performance management as another key hurdle for workforce productivity.
In response to this, ASEAN organisations surveyed are re-examining their talent management strategies to better engage and uplift employees, with around half (55%) investing in employee training and development programmes to close identified skills gaps.
A further 87% said they are using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to conduct HR functions and streamline talent management processes, indicating a willingness to embrace emerging technologies to drive workforce transformation.
This AI progress places ASEAN at the forefront of the APJ region in terms of deployment of AI and ML for workforce management, well ahead of South Korea (79%), North Asia (74%), Australia/New Zealand (72%), and Japan (48%).
Pannie Sia, general manager, ASEAN at Workday notes that technology is increasingly central to how ASEAN businesses and HR leaders inform decision-making, streamline workforce processes, and drive workplace innovation.
“By aligning technology innovations and employee development, organisations can transform employee engagement and capability, building a future-ready workforce and setting the stage for an organisation’s long-term success,” said Sia.
The study also revealed that, along with leveraging AI to streamline talent management, ASEAN organisations are leading the region when it comes to prioritising employee experience, with approximately half of ASEAN respondents (50%) investing in physical, digital, and cultural processes and programmes to increase employee retention.
