The future of learning; the impact on society, businesses and employees

Post-pandemic, the world is facing deep, seismic change. Our societies are in upheaval, our structures are evolving and our work is facing radical transformation.

To combat these issues, governments and leaders are faced with three macro priorities:

the sustainability of the planet
the availability of universal healthcare
and a deep need to transform the skills people need for the workplace

Over the past decade, Changeboard’s annual Future Talent conferences have explored the various ‘skills to thrive’ that we all need to develop in light of this evolving world of work. The existential backdrop has been technology: AI and machine learning. However, COVID-19 and the resulting economic fallout have emphasised the importance of agility.

The role of learning within society

The fourth industrial revolution is already upon us and there is an urgent need for businesses to upskill their people to meet future challenges.

However, it’s also important that organisations and leaders consider how we take all workers with us on the journey into the future of work. This means reskilling existing talent to ensure everybody can participate in the rewards of the future.

We are moving towards a 100-year life, with career transitions spending 60 years. This extended working life will inevitably lead to investment and innovation in education and learning, such as lifelong learning, upskilling, reskilling, 'long-life' learning and unlearning.

Employers can actively respond to employees' extended careers by enabling multi-stage lives, championing lifelong learning and ditching ageism to leverage age diversity. Investing in learning and development will include inclusivity in workplaces and as a result across wider society.

Why learning is at the centre of organisational transformation

At the heart of this is learning. Without effective learning and development programmes, modern training and a culture that puts learning front and centre, reskilling and upskilling cannot succeed.

According to the 2023 Workplace Learning Report, L&D professionals can use their influence to elevate people and their skills for business impact. While ‘work’ has undoubtedly changed forever, there has been an accompanying shift in what is expected of learning leaders.

Influencing C-suite by translating modern workplace trends into people actions, building multi-functional teams that impact the 'business bottom' line and developing leadership mindsets for the new economy are all priorities for those leading learning functions.

This transition from transactional learning models to embedding learning at the heart of organisations so that they develop high-performing learning cultures has the potential to transform learning departments from cost-centres to income-generators.

There is an urgent need to ensure that those responsible for leading learning transform and update their own knowledge as well. Learning leaders must operate at the interface between the future of work, leadership capability and modern learning principles.

The ‘Learning Leader Programme’, aims to support leaders with the skills they need to undertake this complex role.

Learning as a 'human right'

Becoming a learner is one of the most important skills you need to succeed in the 21st century.

In the age of technological change, staying ahead depends on continual self-education – a lifelong mastery of new models, skills and ideas.

In a world that’s changing fast, the ability to learn as fast as possible is quickly becoming a necessity. Most employees understand this, and so, unsurprisingly, it’s high up on their list of demands from their employers.

The business of education, of skills and of learning is about humans flourishing. That’s why we at Future Talent Learning believe that skills development is about purpose and responsibility. It’s about preparing the world for a better future. Let’s create better workplace learning for a better working world.

Why learning is the future of work

In the era of the Great Resignation, global chaos and uncertain economics, it can be easy for businesses to focus on short-term outputs: profits, margins and attrition. However, to thrive, organisations need to look long-term for growth, innovation and development.

We’ve spoken to academics and experts, industry professionals and heads of business, including Amy Edmondson (Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management, Harvard Business School), Andrew White, (Senior Fellow in Management Practice, Saïd Business School) and Margaret Heffernan (Entrepreneur, CEO and Author) on issues ranging from how successful organisations build learning cultures to the skills we’ll need in the future.

We’ve distilled key takeaways to transform your business in our whitepaper 'Why learning is the future of work'.