3 Factors Shaping Corporate Training in 2024: How to Adapt

The role of the learning and development (L&D) department is at a critical juncture. With the rapid pace of technological advancement and the evolving nature of job roles, addressing skills gaps has become more urgent. Failure to adapt corporate training strategies leaves companies ill-equipped in today’s ultra competitive landscape.

The good news is that c-suites are finally recognizing the value of L&D. A 2023 report by the World Economic Forum reveals over 86% of companies intend to increase adoption of frontier technologies like AI to aid corporate training in the next 5 years. 

U.S. companies spent $101.8 billion on employee training in 2023, but with that influx of resources comes higher expectations. Companies now expect L&D to play a pivotal role in the digital transformation and growth of the organization.

This is happening against the backdrop of a significant change in the way people work and learn, driven by digital transformation and a multigenerational workforce. Team members are more physically distant, yet also more connected than ever. Traditional in-person seminars and all-day training sessions are losing ground to quicker bite-sized corporate training content served in the flow of work. Learning experiences can happen anywhere at anytime, and anyone can create them.

Why is corporate training important?

Corporate training is more critical than ever. Changes in technology and the shift to remote work from the COVID pandemic have made continuous learning and upskilling essential. Companies are investing heavily in corporate training programs to make sure their employees keep up. Furthermore, a Linkedin Learning report revealed that 94% of employees would stay longer in a company if it invested in their learning and development. This highlights the crucial role of corporate training in employee engagement and retention.

How corporate training has evolved

Corporate training has undergone significant transformations over the years. From scheduling classes, developing training manuals, and creating powerpoint slides to the introduction of e-learning. The landscape of corporate training and development has always adapted to meet the changing needs of the workforce and advancements in technology.

Online learning platforms like 360Learning have become increasingly important tools to deliver effective corporate training, offering flexibility and accessibility to learners worldwide.

3 biggest trends shaping the future of corporate training

We’ve identified three of the biggest work and learning trends that are shaping the future of corporate training. Here’s how the landscape is evolving and what you need to do to make sure your corporate training programs stay useful and relevant.

1. New expectations for L&D to step up

45% of CEOs believe their company will not be viable in ten years if it stays on its current path. While this indicates that they are more optimistic about global economic growth, CEOs are even more concerned about their companies’ long term viability. 

Many companies are undergoing a digital transformation as they adopt new automation and AI technology. But there is a growing knowledge gap between the demands of this new technology and the capabilities of the existing workforce. Companies are increasingly relying on L&D departments to boost their corporate training efforts to close that gap.

A global survey by McKinsey found that a third of respondents highlighted that companies are leveraging generative AI often in at least one business function. Additionally, 40% said they intend to increase future investments in the technology due to the advancements made by generative AI.  For small to medium-sized companies that may not have significant L&D budgets, here’s how to do more with less.

However, a 2022 survey uncovered that 29% of workers globally said their country ‘lacks people with the skills to do my kind of work’. That’s concerning news for CEOs.

Now, companies are increasingly relying on L&D departments to play an important role in talent acquisition, development, and retention. L&D departments are feeling the pressure to develop corporate training programs to upskill or reskill large numbers of people quickly.

Skilled employees are becoming a bigger competitive advantage, increasing the need to attract high-value candidates. Opportunities to grow and develop within a company have become a big priority for jobseekers, and a reliable retention driver for organizations. Employees want jobs where they can learn new skills to further their careers.

Adapting corporate training for new expectations

Corporate training must adapt by identifying, assessing, and closing skill gaps inside your company. The demand for new and evolving skills means that learning needs must be continuously identified and addressed. Employees are eager to learn new skills, particularly around analytics, AI, and automation in office work environments. Develop corporate training programs and give them the tools they need to do this and build a stronger learning culture to appeal to potential candidates.

The average shelf life of most learning content is less than five years, and that window continues to shorten. With technology changing quickly, sometimes from month to month, you will need to review and update corporate training materials frequently. A collaborative learning platform like 360Learning makes it easy for L&D departments to involve internal subject-matter experts in training content creation and optimization, by allowing SMEs to co-author and contribute to course materials.

2. Acceleration of remote work and learning

In 2020, companies around the world were left scrambling to move operations online. L&D departments faced a dual challenge: helping employees adapt to new routines and technology, and doing this remotely.

As of 2023, 12.7% of full time employees are working from home, whereas 28.2% have adopted a hybrid model. By 2025, around 22% of the workforce, or an estimated 32.6 million Americans will shift to working from home. This suggests a gradual and continuous movement towards remote work arrangements. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, individuals with more education are more likely to have the option of remote work.

As companies increasingly move towards total or partial remote work, online learning programs are becoming more essential as part of a company’s corporate training plan. But, making the switch from in-person training means rethinking existing L&D processes and attitudes.

Updating corporate training for remote work

With the rise of remote working, online corporate training programs have become crucial. Online training is not only cheaper and easier to organize than in-person training sessions, but it also allows employees to learn at their own pace, from anywhere.  Learning software like 360Learning makes it much easier to track individual employees' progress, measure course completion rates, and prove ROI on training initiatives. In full or partially remote companies, online corporate training makes it easier to develop talent and build company culture.

Look for learning solutions and corporate training programs that fit into employees’ daily lives, like micro-learning sessions, mobile learning, and collaborative learning that enables colleagues to engage asynchronously in courses.

Don’t get bogged down by the logistics of online learning or the pressure to create perfect course materials. While these things are important, what matters more is increasing learning accessibility inside your company. Think critically about what you hope to achieve with your learning initiatives and how you can help people learn together, even at a distance. Creating a strong learning culture doesn’t just help people learn better, it makes your company stronger. That said, if you want to make implementing LMS simpler, you can follow our cheat sheet or download our tips to create great training courses.

3. Shift away from top-down corporate training

Traditional top-down management and learning models can no longer meet the needs of employees who need engagement and collaboration. A more democratic learning system is the key to creating an effective learning culture.

In the past, leadership and managers dictated when and what employees learned. L&D determined learning needs from managers, created training, and shared them with employees whose only job was to absorb the training. This was a slow, static process and not the most effective for learner engagement, content quality, or measurable business impact.

Passive, boring learning doesn’t cut it. Corporate training experiences must aim to be engaging, dynamic, and empowering for individuals to contribute meaningfully. 

Compare all this with a bottom-up, collaborative learning approach, where everyone at the company plays a role in identifying key learning needs and contributing to course creation. The learning process is decentralized and democratized. Anyone can declare a learning need, volunteer to create a course, or submit feedback on existing corporate training content. This means training becomes more relevant and easier to produce. Internal subject-matter experts can also easily share institutional knowledge, leading to a decrease in brain drain and information silos.

Demographics play a huge role in this organizational shift. Millennials and Gen Z employees are beginning to dominate the workforce, and they prefer a different learning style than their predecessors. These workers prefer more collaborative work environments and self-directed learning paths. LinkedIn Learning’s 2020 Workplace Learning Report shows that 67% of Gen Z employees want corporate training experiences that are social and collaborative.

360Learning’s platform is built around this idea of collaborative learning. Inside the 360Learning platform, users declare their own training needs, teammates can co-author courses together, and all feedback is housed in one place.  

Making corporate training collaborative

Internally at 360Learning, we’ve fully embraced this model, not just in our learning philosophy but also in our management style. Instead of a top-down management model, we adopted a culture of what we call Convexity, which combines low authority with high individual accountability. We focus on transparency, constant iteration, and accountability via metric tracking. Access to information means everyone has the power to make decisions.

Similarly, bottom-up corporate training allows individuals to play a more proactive role in their training journey. In this model, the role of L&D shifts from executors of content to facilitators. We’ve found that among companies that use our software, non-L&D team members create 85% of the courses.

Instead of spending all their time creating course materials, our L&D members are learning coaches. They map out learning paths for employees, make sure all learning requests are being met, and measure the success of different learning initiatives. Because they aren’t bogged down in creating deliverables, they can have a more significant impact on the organization as a whole.

The ongoing evolution of corporate training

A growing number of companies see the value of corporate training in maintaining a competitive edge. 

The future of corporate training

Several trends are shaping the future of corporate training. One of these is the increasing use of generative AI and machine learning in training programs. These provide personalized learning experiences, adapt to the learner’s pace, and offer real-time feedback.

With AI and machine learning (ML) algorithms, eLearning platforms can evaluate and analyze individual data to create customized learning experiences. This is done by looking into strengths, weaknesses, and learning styles to create flexible learning pathways to suit their individual needs. This approach can not only improve engagement, but also contribute to an increase in learning outcomes.

Additionally, the changing role of learning and development in corporations is evident as L&D professionals are transitioning from content creators to facilitators. Today’s L&D teams are  focused on creating learning cultures within their organizations and empowering employees to take charge of their own learning. And a growing number of organizations are appointing chief learning officers (CLOs) to lead the charge in ensuring L&D initiatives and corporate training strategies are aligned with greater business goals and priorities.