Leveraging tech, reskilling and upskilling: How Singapore firms are future-proofing their workforce

Until recently, Luxasia beauty advisors had to perform stock checking manually and record every product by hand.

Today, that scene looks different. With the company’s in-house app – and through upskilling and reskilling – beauty advisors can tackle such tasks more efficiently. Stocktaking is digitised, freeing up time for them to focus on engaging with customers.

They are also trained to use consumer profiles and sales insights from the company’s customer relationship management system. With this, beauty advisors are guided to understand shoppers’ preferences and buying habits, helping them anticipate needs and offer personalised recommendations.

For Luxasia, this is a shift that supports more meaningful customer interactions and elevates the retail experience.

“It’s all about connecting with our consumers naturally, and leveraging technology and data to deliver beyond customers’ expectations,” says Ms Shan Chen, regional managing director for Singapore and Taiwan at Luxasia.

The omnichannel beauty and luxury lifestyle brand distributor in Asia-Pacific has been transforming its workforce since 2016, recognising the need to evolve with the times. More recently, Luxasia has deepened this journey by taking part in the Structured Career Planning (SCP) workshop – supported by the Jobs-Skills Integrator for Retail Industry (JSIT-R). Representatives took part in role-playing exercises and real-life case study discussions to learn how to hold meaningful career conversations with employees. This hands-on approach helped the company align individual employee aspirations with organisational goals and develop clearer career progression pathways that support employee retention and engagement.

JSIT-R is a nationwide initiative that supports retailers in redesigning jobs, upskilling and reskilling staff and matching talent to enhanced job roles. By working closely with both employers and employees, it helps companies build skilled, adaptable workforces that can thrive in a fast-changing retail landscape. This is all part of a proactive shift towards workforce transformation as industries and skills evolve.

Luxasia has since redesigned selected job scopes and is currently on its next stage with JSIT-R through Workforce Singapore’s Career Conversion Programme (CCP). Fourteen beauty advisors are undergoing on-the-job training based on their redesigned job roles to become internal champions for new technologies and workflows. They will, in turn, pass on these skills to the wider team of more than 150 beauty advisors in Singapore.

“We are trying to enrich their roles while simplifying and automating some of the tedious tasks that they used to do manually. By enabling them with tech tools, they can spend less time on administrative duties and focus on serving customers, enriching the quality of their day-to-day work,” says Ms Chen.

While Luxasia already had internal plans to leverage technology, Ms Chen says JSIT-R’s guidance provided added structure and expertise in job redesign, making workforce transformation even more sustainable and impactful.

Reskilling, upskilling and retaining long-serving staff

As businesses across industries grapple with disruptions led by trends such as artificial intelligence and shifting consumer habits, workforce transformation is critical to keep ahead of the changing landscape. This is no exception for the retail industry.

For home-grown brand FotoHub, keeping up with the times has been essential – and the management has actively embraced workforce transformation to do so. Since 1987, it has weathered many storms, transforming itself from a small photo print shop into an imaging solutions company that stays relevant in an age of ubiquitous camera phones.

Attracting and retaining talent remains a challenge though, especially as some staff are accustomed to “the old ways of doing things”. To address these issues, FotoHub joined the SCP workshop under the JSIT-R initiative.

Co-founder Eric Tan says, “We realised some employees are unsure about their long-term progression within the organisation, so the workshop actually helps us understand how to support both their personal and professional growth in a structured way.”

By understanding employees’ career aspirations, FotoHub was able to redesign their job scope and work with them to upskill and reskill to ensure their long-term career health – meaning employees would have the skills and opportunities to grow within the company.

“The workshop has taught me how to approach career conversations in a more intentional and constructive way, as well as how to identify individual strengths, interests and potential before designing possible development paths for my staff,” he shares.

Mr Tan is putting three staff members through the CCP, where they will receive on-the-job training for their redesigned roles. He also plans to streamline business processes to give his retail and production managers access to sales and supplier data so that they are empowered to make informed decisions. “I want them to be ‘the boss’ rather than a worker,” he says.

FotoHub’s oldest employee, a 73-year-old woman, is among those who will benefit from these initiatives as their roles are being redesigned to include new technical, digital and customer-facing responsibilities.

The experiences of Luxasia and FotoHub highlight a shared belief: workforce transformation is not just for large corporations – it is essential for every business that wants to stay relevant and future-proof for continued success.

“Our experience tells us that workforce transformation is possible when you have a clear goal, strong management support and are engaging your people throughout the journey,” says Mr Tan.

His advice to other retailers? “Stay committed and keep your people at the heart of every decision.”

Find out how you can embark on your workforce transformation today