Key Insights: 

‍

▶  Ignoring the hidden talents within your team can seriously dent your operational efficiency, leaving potential improvements on the table.

▶  Failing to recognize and utilize these skills can decrease job satisfaction and increase employee turnover.

▶  Discovering and harnessing these hidden skills can drastically enhance your company's competitiveness and efficiency.

▶  With its advanced PC and mac employee monitoring software, Insightful can uncover these unseen skills, helping you make the most of your team's full potential.

‍

Read time: 9 minutes

Are you making the most of every asset in your workplace, or could you be sitting on a wealth of untapped resources without even knowing it?
‍

What is this untapped goldmine? Hidden skills lying dormant in your workforce. 
‍

If you miss spotting hidden skills in the workplace, you're not just leaving money on the table by hampering operational efficiency; you're also likely killing job satisfaction. Employees feel more valued and stick around longer when they can flex all their skills, not just the obvious ones.
‍

Detecting hidden skills is tough because they often don't show up in daily work or performance reviews, and employees might not mention them if they don't see them as relevant or don't get the chance to use them. Luckily, there are many steps you can take to uncover the hidden capabilities lurking in your workforce. 
‍

Identifying and utilizing these hidden assets can give your company a one up on the competition. Are you risking your company's future by ignoring the untapped potential within your team?
‍

Don't let unseen potential be your company's downfall. In this article, we’ll provide insights into how you can start identifying the hidden skills in your workforce. Discover how Insightful’s employee remote monitoring software can help!
‍

What are hidden skills?

Hidden skills are talents and abilities your employees have that you’re unaware of because they don’t show up in their day-to-day work. This could be anything from speaking another language fluently, to having a knack for coding, to being great at planning events. 
‍

These skills aren’t part of their job descriptions but can be incredibly valuable to your organization. By recognizing and tapping into these hidden skills, you can improve how you recruit internally, manage transformation projects more effectively, staff projects more strategically, and create a more innovative and engaged team environment.
‍

Why do skills go unnoticed?

Employees often don’t realize how their personal skills could actually help out in their current jobs. For example, a graphic designer working in finance might not think about pitching in on marketing materials or presentations because it’s not in their job description. 
‍

Communication can be another big hurdle. People might think their skills aren’t relevant or might feel too shy to bring them up during reviews or interviews. Plus, managers and HR usually zoom in on the skills that directly relate to someone's job, so they miss out on seeing the bigger picture. Traditional HR evaluations are so focused on specific job roles that they overlook skills that could boost team dynamics or streamline operations.
‍

The vibe at work really matters too. Employees might feel uncomfortable stepping outside their boxes if a company sticks to rigid job roles. But in a workplace that digs innovation and encourages folks from different departments to work together, hidden talents are much more likely to come to light.
‍

What are the benefits of unlocking hidden skills?

‍

You only stand to gain when you identify the hidden skills in your workforce. Uncovering and utilizing hidden talents in your teams can help you:
‍

✓  Make the Most of Your Team: By spotting and using everyone's hidden talents, you can assign tasks better, cut down on wasted effort, and get more done with the same team - improving operational efficiency.
‍

✓  Boost Creativity: Hidden skills bring new ideas and different ways of solving problems, sparking creativity and leading to better solutions and innovative approaches.
‍

✓  Increase Job Satisfaction: Careers with high job satisfaction utilize all the skills an employees has; they feel valued and happier at work, leading to higher motivation and dedication.
‍

✓  Save Money: Using the skills your team already has means you don’t have to spend as much on hiring new people or expensive training programs.
‍

✓  Stay Agile: Employees with a mix of skills make it easier for your company to adapt to new challenges and changes in the market, keeping you ahead of the curve.
‍

✓  Improve Teamwork: Knowing and using each other's strengths can make your team work better together, creating a more effective and harmonious work environment.
‍

✓  Get More Done: When people use their best skills, they work faster and more efficiently, leading to higher productivity and better results.
‍

✓  Keep Your Best People: Employees who feel their talents are recognized and used are more likely to stick around, reducing turnover and keeping valuable experience in the company.

‍

How can hidden skills be identified & developed?

Uncovering hidden skills requires smart strategies and tools. When you put these into action, you’ll reveal and grow your team's hidden talents.
‍

Open the Lines of Communication

Create an environment where employees feel comfortable sharing their skills and interests beyond their current roles. Encourage honest chats about what they enjoy and excel at. Hold regular one-on-one meetings to discuss career aspirations and hidden skills.
‍

HR can also include these practices in the new hire process, ensuring new employees' full range of skills are recognized and used from the start.
‍

Questions to Ask:

• Can you think of a time recently when you used a skill that surprised you?
• What’s something you’re really good at that you never get to do here?
• Are there skills you’d like to get better at to move up or try something new?

Activities to Try:

• Skills Workshops: Get everyone together to share their skills and brainstorm how these could fit into new or existing projects.
  
  

• Show & Tell Lunches: Host casual lunch meets where folks can present something they’re passionate about that might also help out at work.
  
  

Conduct Skills Assessments

Use different skills assessment methods to uncover your team's hidden talents. These assessments help you see beyond current roles and maximize everyone's abilities.

Types of Assessments:

• Self-Assessment Surveys: Ask employees to rate their own skills and point out areas where they excel but have yet to have the chance to show off. This encourages them to reflect on and share their hidden talents.
  
  
• 360-Degree Feedback: Get feedback from an employee's coworkers, direct reports, and supervisors to get a full picture of their skills. This approach can reveal strengths the employee might not mention themselves.
  
  
• Skills Inventory Checklists: Provide checklists for employees to fill out, listing their skills in areas like tech, creativity, and communication. This ensures you don't miss any hidden abilities.
  
  
• Competency Assessments: Measure employees against the skills needed for different roles in your company. This can highlight those who have more to offer than their current job requires.
  
  
• Job Simulations & Role-Playing: Set up scenarios that mimic real work situations and watch how employees handle them. This can reveal skills and strengths that don't come out in everyday tasks.
  
  

Boost Learning & Development

When people know there’s room to grow, they’re more likely to show off their skills and take on new challenges. Provide training programs, workshops, and access to online courses that allow employees to develop and showcase their hidden skills.

Questions to Ask:

• What’s one skill you wish you could learn that would help you in your current role?

Create Diverse Learning Opportunities:

• Workshops: Organize in-house workshops on a variety of topics. These could range from technical skills like coding and data analysis to soft skills like leadership and communication. Encourage employees to both attend and lead workshops in areas where they excel.
  
  
• Training Programs: Develop comprehensive training programs tailored to different career paths within your organization. These programs should include hands-on projects, interactive sessions, and real-world applications to make learning engaging and practical.
  
  
• Online Courses: Provide access to online learning platforms like Coursera, Udemy, or LinkedIn Learning. These platforms offer a wide range of courses that employees can take at their own pace. Encourage employees to select courses that align with both their interests and organizational needs.

Case in Point:

HSBC launched a skills-based hiring and re-skilling program in their Wealth and Personal Banking Business. By focusing on identifying talent through transferable skills and developing future skills via internal platforms like Degreed and Talent Marketplace, HSBC has been able to remove barriers to career mobility. 
‍

This approach has prepared the bank for future challenges and built a more inclusive and adaptable workforce. Employees with hidden skills, such as proficiency in emerging technologies, were identified and re-skilled, significantly boosting the bank’s operational efficiency and innovation capacity.
‍

Encourage Cross-Functional Projects

Assigning projects that bring together employees from different departments is a great way to uncover hidden talents within your team. When people from various backgrounds work together, unexpected skills often emerge. 

Here’s how to do it effectively:

• Pick the Right Projects: Choose projects that naturally need input from multiple departments, like launching a new product, running a marketing campaign, improving a process, or organizing a company event.
  
  
• Build Diverse Teams: Create teams with members from different areas like marketing, sales, IT, HR, and finance. This mix of skills and perspectives encourages innovative thinking and problem-solving.
  
  
• Set Clear Goals & Roles: Clearly define the project’s objectives and outline the roles for each team member. Let people take on responsibilities that match their skills but also encourage them to try new things.
  
  
• Rotate Leadership: Have different team members lead different parts of the project. This gives everyone a chance to step up and showcase their leadership skills and other hidden talents.

Case in Point: 

Ericsson successfully managed its massive 5G transition by forming cross-functional teams comprising engineers, sales, marketing, and learning specialists. This collaboration led to the creation of a well-defined skills model that uncovered hidden talents across departments. 

For example, engineers demonstrated strong strategic planning abilities while marketing staff contributed valuable technical insights. This inclusive approach not only facilitated a smooth transition but also promoted a culture of innovation and problem-solving.

Create Mentoring Opportunities

Pair employees with mentors who can help them explore and develop their hidden skills. Mentoring isn’t just about climbing the ladder—it’s a two-way street where hidden skills often come to light.

Questions to Ask:

• What’s a skill you’d love to learn from someone else here?

Activities to Try:

• Reverse Mentoring: Pair junior staff with experienced colleagues so they can learn from each other. Juniors get valuable insights, while seniors pick up new skills like the latest tech trends. It's a win-win for everyone.
  
  
• Mentor Circles: Form small groups that meet regularly to share skills and career tips. These sessions can cover various topics like leadership or industry trends and help build a supportive network across different departments.
  ‍

Celebrate & Recognize

Acknowledge and celebrate when employees demonstrate hidden talents. Public recognition can encourage others to share and develop their own skills. Nothing brings hidden talents forward like a little recognition.

Questions to Ask:

• Can you share a recent project where your unique skills really made a difference?

Activities to Try:

• Kudos Boards: Use online or physical boards where people can post shout-outs for coworkers’ hidden skills.
  
  
• Award Programs: Set up awards for ‘Hidden Hero’ or ‘Skill Star’ to spotlight those who bring something extra to their roles.
  ‍

Leverage Tech Tools

Implement AI-driven analytics and performance staffing tracker tools to uncover skills and trends managers might miss. Even common employee monitoring software helps you efficiently track, develop, and utilize hidden talents within your team, ensuring everyone’s skills are recognized and fully utilized. 

Here's how to do it effectively:

• AI-Driven Analytics & Performance Tracking: Use AI-powered tools to analyze employee performance data. These tools can identify patterns and trends that are not immediately obvious to managers, such as an employee's proficiency in specific tasks or their ability to learn new skills quickly.
  
  
• Skill Mapping Software: Utilize software that maps out the skills within your organization. Tools like Skillsoft or TalentLMS can help you create a comprehensive skills inventory, showing which skills are available, which are lacking, and who has potential to develop in specific areas. This mapping can be crucial for strategic planning and project staffing.
  
  
• Project Management Tools: Integrate project management tools like Asana, Trello, or Jira that track employee contributions and project progress. These tools can highlight which employees are excelling in particular areas and might have hidden skills that can be leveraged for other projects.
  
  
• Performance Management Systems: Use comprehensive performance management systems like Workday, BambooHR, or SAP SuccessFactors. These systems provide continuous feedback and performance reviews, helping managers identify hidden talents and track employee development over time.
  
  
• Employee Engagement Platforms: Platforms like Officevibe or TINYpulse can gauge employee engagement and satisfaction. By analyzing feedback and engagement data, you can uncover areas where employees feel underutilized and identify hidden skills that could be tapped into.
  
  
• Data Visualization Tools: Implement data visualization tools like Tableau or Microsoft Power BI to create clear, visual reports on skill trends and performance metrics. These visuals can make it easier for managers to see the bigger picture and make strategic decisions based on real data.
  ‍

Case in Point:

Reuters expanded its data science team by developing a skills taxonomy that identified hidden skills within their existing workforce. Employees with strong analytical skills working in unrelated departments were transitioned into the data science team. This internal mobility saved recruitment costs and integrated employees who were already familiar with the company’s culture and operations, leading to quicker onboarding and better team cohesion.

‍

Identify Hidden Skills with Insightful

‍

Insightful is a top-notch in-office and remote worker monitoring tool that really helps businesses get the best out of their teams. It keeps an eye on what everyone's up to in real time and works with over 50 other tools to spot hidden talents within your crew. 
‍

Insightful does so much more than solve the problem of how to monitor remote workers. This means managers can figure out who's good at what, shuffle teams around to play to everyone’s strengths, and customize training to boost productivity. 
‍

Here’s how it works:

‍

• Dynamic Performance Tracking: Insightful records detailed logs of employee activities, including the apps and websites they use and how they allocate their time during work hours. This data helps pinpoint employees who excel in specific tasks or frequently engage with certain tools, indicating a proficiency that may not be captured through traditional assessments.
  
  
• Capability Discovery through Productivity Analysis: The platform analyzes work patterns and productivity levels, identifying not only top performers but also those who show potential in areas they aren’t currently assigned to. For example, an employee who quickly navigates complex databases or software could be a good candidate for roles involving data analysis or IT management, even if they are currently in a different role.
  
  
• Enhanced Skill Insight via Tool Integration: By integrating with over 50 tools commonly used in various industries, Insightful can pull in a broader spectrum of data to provide a more complete picture of an employee’s skills and work habits. This integration allows for a seamless analysis across different platforms and projects, enhancing the ability to discover hidden talents.
  
  
• Engagement-Driven Skill Identification: Insightful also monitors engagement levels, which can reveal employees who are potentially underutilized or could be challenged further. High engagement in specific tasks could indicate strong skills in those areas, suggesting opportunities for further development or promotion.

‍

With Insightful, you're not just working harder; you're working smarter, using solid data to make smart choices that crank up your team’s efficiency.
‍

Ready to discover the hidden talents within your team and boost your operational efficiency? Try Insightful’s employee computer monitoring software free today and transform your productivity management with our real-time performance tracking and deep productivity analysis. 
‍

Start your free trial now and see the difference Insightful can make!

‍