State of Learning and Development in 2021

 2020 has been an unpredictable year full of upsets and pivots. Organizations all over the world have used learning as a way to navigate these changes. 

As the year comes to a close, many learning and development (L&D) leaders are asking: What will workplace learning look like in 2021? We surveyed over 500 global experts to understand what L&D professionals can expect in the new year.

Closing the skills gap is more urgent than ever

Though closing the skills gap has long been a priority for many organizations, in 2020 it took on a new urgency. Companies leveraged upskilling and reskilling to adapt to the changes imposed by the pandemic. 

While 14% of the global workforce was upskilled in 2019, that figure more than doubled in 2020, with over a third of the workforce (38%) upskilled. This dramatic increase is a remarkable feat for L&D professionals around the world. It’s also a challenge in its own right. 

Closing the skills gap was the number one L&D program goal identified by the leaders we surveyed. Other goals included driving organizational growth, improving employee engagement, and increasing job satisfaction. How do these objectives compare to your organization’s L&D goals? 

L&D programs still have room to grow

L&D programs across the world have made impressive progress in upskilling their workforces. But there are still opportunities for improvement. More than half of the leaders we surveyed reported satisfaction with their L&D program. The rest — 43% of respondents — indicated that they were either dissatisfied with or indifferent to their programs.