The Benefits and Challenges of Employee Reskilling Using Agile Approach

A Case Study of Indonesian Telecommunication Company’s Transformation

Authors

  • Evan Naratama Human Capital Business Partner, Telkom Indonesia https://orcid.org/0009-0009-5900-5483
  • Muhammad Subhan Iswahyudi Telkom Corporate University Center, Telkom Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25120/jre.4.2.2024.4175

Keywords:

Agile, Scrum, Business Transformation, Business Refocusing, Experiential Learning

Abstract

Facing strong industry pressures, an Indonesian telecommunications company formulates a transformation strategy. The company aims to perform business refocusing to exploit the growing business-to-business (B2B) market. Consequently, the employees need a reskilling program from business-to-consumer (B2C) marketing to B2B marketing. However, there are complexities and uncertainties in managing the reskilling program. From the information and technology field, agile approaches offer methodologies for managing a project amidst high uncertainties and external changes. Currently, research on how agile approaches benefit non-information technology projects such as reskilling is few. This research aims to explore the key benefits and challenges in implementing a reskilling program with an agile framework. Methodology applied in this study includes secondary data analysis, interviews and thematic analysis to gain insight from qualitative data collection. The interview results indicate that an agile approach benefits participants by vast learning opportunities, strengthening their understanding of new target markets, and gaining confidence and a new mindset in conducting B2B sales. Moreover, the challenges that must be addressed are that the generalized journey design does not effectively cater to the diverse needs of all participants, as well as difficulties in managing time to balance initial assignments and mastering product knowledge within a short timeframe.

References

Basile, V., Bianchi, F., Casahuga, G., McDevitt, S., Rajeswaran, A., Srivastava, A. (2024, July). Reshaping Telecom Investment In A Next-Generation World. https://www.adlittle.com/en/insights/viewpoints/reshaping-telecom-investment-next-generation-world

Beck, K., Beedle, M., Van Bennekum, A., Cockburn, A., Cunningham, W., Fowler, M., ... & Thomas, D. (2001). The agile manifesto.

Bekele, W. B., & Ago, F. Y. (2022). Sample size for interview in qualitative research in social sciences: A guide to novice researchers. Research in Educational Policy and Management, 4(1), 42-50.

Dybå, T., Dingsøyr, T., & Moe, N. B. (2014). Agile project management. Software project management in a changing world, 277-300.

Emeritus (2024, January 20). What Is Reskilling? Why Is It So Important for Today’s Workforce?. https://emeritus.org/blog/what-is-reskilling-definition/

Godiner, J. (2024, January 9). What is Account Management and Why Is It Key to Success?. https://fellow.app/blog/management/account-management/

Gustavsson, T. (2016). Benefits of agile project management in a non-software development context: A literature review. In Fifth International Scientific Conference on Project Management in the Baltic Countries, April 14-15, 2016, Riga, University of Latvia (pp. 114-124). Latvijas Universitate.

Hennink, M., & Kaiser, B. N. (2022). Sample sizes for saturation in qualitative research: A systematic review of empirical tests. Social science & medicine, 292, 114523.

Hyman, M. R., & Sierra, J. J. (2016). Open-versus close-ended survey questions. Business Outlook, 14(2), 1-5.

Izquierdo, R. (2024, May 10). How Account Management Can Impact Your Business. https://www.fool.com/the-ascent/small-business/crm/account-management/

Jones, S. (2022, February 22). Interpreting themes from qualitative data: thematic analysis. https://www.evalacademy.com/articles/interpreting-themes-from-qualitative-data-thematic-analysis

Kaplan, Z. (2023, April 11). What Is Account Management?. https://www.theforage.com/blog/careers/account-management

Kiger, M. E., & Varpio, L. (2020). Thematic analysis of qualitative data: AMEE Guide No. 131. Medical teacher, 42(8), 846-854.

Maguire, M., & Delahunt, B. (2017). Doing a thematic analysis: A practical, step-by-step guide for learning and teaching scholars. All Ireland journal of higher education, 9(3).

Mersino, A. (2024, February 29). The Most Popular Agile Frameworks Today. https://medium.com/leadership-and-agility/the-most-popular-agile-frameworks-today-b60d2597f897

PwC (2023, September 28). Perspectives From the Global Telecom Outlook 2023-2027. The Future on The Line. https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/tmt/telecom-outlook-perspectives.html

Rose, L. (2020, January 12). What is the Difference Between Account Management and Sales?. https://brooksgroup.com/sales-training-blog/what-difference-between-account-management-and-sales/

Rusconi, G. (2024, March 25). What is Reskilling? Benefits, Planning, and Challenges. https://cloudassess.com/blog/reskilling/

Saunders, B., Sim, J., Kingstone, T., Baker, S., Waterfield, J., Bartlam, B., ... & Jinks, C. (2018). Saturation in qualitative research: exploring its conceptualization and operationalization. Quality & quantity, 52, 1893-1907.

Scrum.org (2020). What is Scrum?. https://www.scrum.org/resources/what-scrum-module

Schwaber, K., & Sutherland, J. (2020). The scrum guide. The Definitive Guide to Scrum: The Rules of the Game. Scrum Alliance.

Silverstein, M. (2020, January 20). The Challenges of Reskilling – And Why it’s So Critical. https://www.criteriacorp.com/blog/the-challenges-of-reskilling-and-why-its-so-critical

Straçusser, G. (2015). Agile project management concepts applied to construction and other non-IT fields. In PMI® Global Congress (Vol. 2015).

Taherdoost, H. (2022). How to conduct an effective interview; a guide to interview design in research study. International Journal of Academic Research in Management, 11(1), 39-51.

Tamayo, J., Doumi, L., Goel, S., Kovács-Ondrejkovic, O., Sadun, R. (2023, September-October). Reskilling in the Age of AI: Five New Paradigms for Leaders—and Employees. https://hbr.org/2023/09/reskilling-in-the-age-of-ai

Xendit (2022, August 5). Emerging B2B Marketplaces in Indonesia: Challenges and Opportunities. https://www.xendit.co/en/blog/emerging-b2b-marketplaces-in-indonesia-challenges-and-opportunities/

Žužek, T., Gosar, Ž., Kušar, J., & Berlec, T. (2020). Adopting agile project management practices in non-software SMEs: A case study of a Slovenian medium-sized manufacturing company. Sustainability, 12(21), 9245

Downloads

Published

2024-12-30

How to Cite

Naratama, E., & Iswahyudi, M. S. (2024). The Benefits and Challenges of Employee Reskilling Using Agile Approach: A Case Study of Indonesian Telecommunication Company’s Transformation. Journal of Resilient Economies (ISSN: 2653-1917), 4(2). https://doi.org/10.25120/jre.4.2.2024.4175