According to most dictionaries, we know that when there is something missing from a situation that prevents it from being complete or satisfactory, we can say there is a gap. A knowledge gap is a difference that is related to expertise, skills and know-how. It occurs when there is a significant disparity between what an organisation needs and the current capabilities of its staff.

When someone’s pursuit of knowledge is “ongoing, voluntary and self-motivated”, it can be called lifelong learning. Lifelong learning takes a holistic approach to education and development, actively encouraging people to learn throughout their entire lives while enhancing their human potential as a whole. Lifelong learning is different from continuing education of job-based skills development: it has a broader scope and more creative outlets, such as online tools and courses.

We may know since Ancient Greece that the “only constant in life is change”, a quote attributed to Heraclitus. Even so, no one will argue that change is hard for most people. Human beings are creatures of habit: we tend to dislike change because it interferes with our sense of autonomy and it can make us feel we’re about to lose control.

Growth is a beautiful thing, isn’t it? It means there are many things you are doing well. However, it also means your team and you will need to deal with the challenges it brings. But, don’t worry! If your company was able to generate growth, now it will be able to overcome its challenges. And here are some tips to help you.

Telework — another designation for working remotely — is becoming increasingly popular. For employees, remote work is a highly attractive model: it allows them to own their work-life balance regardless of family circumstances, it avoids draining commute times and it also offers a much-desired flexibility when it comes to being able to independently manage their workload and time.

In addition to product knowledge, which is absolutely fundamental for your sales reps, different sales skills training is a key factor in boosting sales performance as well as employee confidence and motivation. But which sales skills should be part of your Sales Training Academy?

Regardless of the innumerable benefits a sales academy can bring to your company — and there sure are plenty —, if you fail to prove the impact such an academy will have on the business, it may be difficult to get the necessary buy-in to establish it in the first place.

Creating and fostering a learning culture is quite different to simply having your Learning and Development team deliver a set of training courses. It means creating an environment where knowledge and best practices are shared between employees and teams as a constant practice. Fostering a learning culture is acknowledging that there is a growth mind-set at the core of your company's values.