Adapting to Change: Examples of Key Skills for Workplace Success

With the development of the internet and technology, particularly AI taking over the world at a rapid pace, the labour market is changing rapidly. To remain a competitive candidate and generally be a strong professional in general, you must possess a qualification such as adaptability. 

As trends such as digital transformation, remote working and automation increase year after year, you need to understand how to improve adaptability skills. Remember that the ability to adapt to changes and learn new things today are key skills that companies are looking for in new employees, especially those being considered for leadership positions. 

What Does It Mean to Be Adaptable in the Workplace?

So, firstly, let's find out what is adaptability. In simple words, it is the ability of an individual to be flexible to adapt to changing conditions, factors or the environment in general. Adaptability in the workplace is a skill highly valued by almost any manager. 

Essentially, your adaptability allows you to easily adjust to changing responsibilities, expectations, ideas, trends and various processes. By demonstrating adaptability skills to an employer, you are essentially stating that you are motivated to try new things and learn new skills thereby making you more valuable to the company. 

If you are an adaptable person, you have a higher chance of getting the position you want. For example, a recent McKinsey & Company study shows that a person with adaptable skills has a nearly 25% higher chance of getting a job than those who do not have them. 

Is Adaptability a Soft Skill or a Key Qualification?

You are probably wondering ‘is adaptability a skill or quality, something innate?’. At first glance, it may seem that adaptability to change is just a soft skill valued by employers. However, if you look deeper, you will realise that it is the ability to learn quickly and find optimal solutions in non-standard situations and cope with uncertainty. 

Viewed by employers as a strategic quality that helps employees cope with the many challenges of innovation and ever-increasing competition, adaptability is now an integral part of professional success. Around two-thirds of employers believe that adaptability is significantly more important now than it was a decade ago, a finding confirmed by the Barclays Lifeskills survey. 

Why Is Adaptability Important for Workplace Success?

So, why is adaptability becoming more and more important? It's simple: changes in the world are happening faster and faster year after year. Adaptability is now literally the key to survival for companies and employees alike:

·  Market players who can adapt to change faster have a better chance of becoming leaders than their competitors.

·  Adaptive employees demonstrate a higher ability to remain productive in the workplace even in times of instability and crisis.

·  Flexibility as a quality allows you to interact with your colleagues more effectively, as well as to find compromises in conflict situations and react quickly to any changes. 

Personal growth is another reason why adaptability is important. If you are willing to learn new things and take on challenges with dignity, you are more likely to succeed than your less flexible and hesitant colleagues. 

Adaptability in a Changing Work Environment

Although large companies like Microsoft or Amazon are striving to bring some of their workforce back to their offices, the trend towards remote working is not waning globally. In addition, technological and organisational changes, cultural diversity and frequent crises make adaptability essential for successful work today. 

Adaptability Skills Resume: A Competitive Edge

Many people today are looking for a job for a variety of reasons, from simply wanting to make a change in their lives to seeking to move up the career ladder. The truth is that most employers today favour candidates who can maintain high performance in a fast-paced environment. To stand out from the competition for a vacant position, try to reflect adaptability as a key skill on your CV:

·  Give specific examples of how you have successfully learnt something new in a short time frame and how it has helped you on projects.

·  Emphasise the importance of adaptability by using eye-catching key phrases such as ‘quick problem solving’ or ‘flexible in your approach to tasks’.

·  Point out specific results you have achieved because of your ability to learn new things quickly. 

For example, if you worked in a company that transitioned to telecommuting, you might describe how you handled the transition and what results you achieved.  

How to Improve Adaptability Skills

The good news is that adaptability is a skill that can be developed. Even if you consider yourself an inflexible person, you can become more open to change, thus positively impacting you in the workplace. Below, you'll find 5 steps to help you become more adaptable and resilient. 

Practical 5 Steps to Improve Adaptability Skills Today

 Inspiring Adaptability Examples

Let's look at some adaptability in the workplace examples of how companies have adapted to change to continue to lead their industries:

·  Microsoft initially used a license-selling model that stopped being effective after a while. To stay in the lead, the company moved to a cloud subscription option for products like Microsoft 365.

·  Although Airbnb was conceived as a service for renting accommodation around the world, the pandemic made adjustments. To avoid losing its leading position, the company shifted its focus to long-term rentals and online activities.

·  Although cars with internal combustion engines are still in high demand, things look like the future lies with electric cars. That's why Ford has started to actively produce EVs and invest in autonomous driving technology. 

A good example of how flexibility and adaptability lead to career heights can be found in the path of Sundar Pichai. Having started his career at Google by working on Toolbar, he later played a key role in developing the Chrome browser and popularising the Android mobile OS. With his ability to adapt to new challenges and quickly switch between projects, Sundar rose to CEO of Google and its parent company Alphabet. 

Key Traits of Adaptable Professionals in Leading Companies

So, willingness to learn and openness to new things are certainly important qualities in the workplace. However, they alone are not enough for one to be called an adaptive professional. The list of qualities of an adaptive leader also includes the ability to find unconventional solutions to problems, proactivity, high emotional intelligence and good communication skills. To be a sought-after employee aspiring for higher positions, you must constantly develop these and many other qualities by taking inspiration from the journey stories of outstanding individuals such as Jeff Wilke, Satya Nadella, Sundar Pichai and others.

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