Free LinkedIn classes help employees upskill

February 3, 2021 2:50 PM

Professional development has plateaued during COVID-19, but LinkedIn is giving employees across the U.S. the skills they need to grow and advance at work.

To help professionals learn skills that can lead to a promotion, LinkedIn is offering 15 of their LinkedIn Learning classes for free. These classes will focus on hard technical skills like software development, project management and sales — jobs that are currently in high demand, according to research by LinkedIn and Microsoft.

“In our ever-changing workforce, skills set you apart,” says Tiffany Poeppelman, director of the business leadership program at LinkedIn. “Whether it’s spending time improving your focus, or brushing up on project management foundations, employees should always make the investment to learn new, high demand skills to get to the next level in their career.”

Half of workers set new career goals for themselves in 2021, according to a Future of Work report by job search site Monster. Twenty-three percent of employees said learning new skills and improving existing ones was a top priority.

In addition to classes on technical skills, LinkedIn is offering classes on soft skills, like giving and receiving feedback. The goal of these soft skill courses is to teach professionals how to lead and mentor others, increase their focus, transition into a people management role and be a leader. The classes will not only benefit the employee, but lead to a more constructive and collaborative work environment.

“In addition to asking for feedback, you need to get good at giving constructive feedback and help others to develop,” says Gemma Leigh Roberts, a LinkedIn Learning instructor. “Giving and receiving feedback are two sides of the same coin, and everyone should have the ability to provide useful and thoughtful feedback to others — regardless of seniority.”

Scroll through to see the full list of classes, which will be free until Feb. 28. All of the courses can be found on LinkedIn Learning.

Make the move from individual contributor to manager

In this soft skills class, learn strategies that will help you focus on the broader success of the team, including how to manage former peers, initiate difficult conversations, delegate work, talk about money, discuss performance and more.

New manager foundations

Get practical advice to help you establish your identity as a leader, connect with your team and become a successful first-time manager.

Leading without formal authority

Learn how to exhibit leadership as an individual contributor or SME by influencing, inspiring, mentoring, and motivating others.

Improving your focus

Develop survival skills to avoid daily distractions, strengthen concentration, and protect your relationships, both at work and at home, by focusing on what's most important.

Giving and receiving feedback

Learn how to give and receive high-quality feedback, whether it’s with peers, managers, colleagues, team members, friends or family.

Python for data science essential training

In this hard skills class, learn basic coding experience through a step-by-step practical data science project: a web scraper that downloads and analyzes data.

SQL essential training

Knowing how to code and manage relational databases and database-driven applications is a valuable skill for any career in tech. Learn how to use the core features of SQL: creating tables; defining relationships; manipulating strings; using triggers to automate actions; and using subselects and views.

Project management simplified

Learn the 12 steps to manage projects without creating a lot of extra overhead, as well as how to use traditional project management tools like Gantt charts and network diagrams.

Project management foundations

Learn the fundamentals of project management, from establishing project goals and objectives and building a project plan to managing resources and work, meeting deadlines and closing the project.

Learning Kubernetes

Learn how to get a Kubernetes environment up and running, deploy a sample Kubernetes application, and explore advanced topics like production deployments, monitoring and logging.

DevOps foundations

Get an overview of the DevOps movement, focusing on the core value of CAMS (culture, automation, measurement, and sharing), as well as various methodologies and tools an organization can adopt to transition into DevOps.

Asking great sales questions

Learn how to gain insight into your customer’s business problems and objectives so you can ask great questions that create connection, drive credibility, create urgency and validate the business impact of your solution.

Learning Docker

Learn the basics of Docker, including its containers, Dockerfiles (or base images), and capabilities for networking, data management, infrastructure optimization.

Cert prep: Scrum Master

Master the foundational knowledge you need to study in order to pass exams such as Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), Professional Scrum Master (PSM) and more.

Agile foundations

Learn the fundamental concepts to think like an agile team, including how to enhance communication with user stories and cross-functional teams, and how to respond to change the agile way.