Training activity is up. So why is the skills gap still here?
Five findings from our practitioner-led workforce skills development research.
If your organization is investing more in training but still struggling to close critical skills gaps, you may be fixing the wrong problem.
Our 2026 Workforce Skills Development Report: Measuring, Building, and Scaling Data-Driven Enterprise Learning looks at what is holding organizations back and what high-performing organizations are doing differently.
Five findings from the research:
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Training activity doesn't equal a skilling operation.
Most organizations have learning activities, but few have a systematic, skills-focused operation. |
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Poor skills data holds programs back.
Incomplete or disconnected skills data makes it difficult to identify the capabilities the business needs. |
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High-performing organizations diagnose before they design.
They understand the skills problem before deciding what training to build or deliver. |
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Business impact remains difficult to measure.
Only 8% of L&D professionals have confidence in measuring real business impact. |
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Managers help make capability gains stick.
Manager involvement before launch is a key predictor of sustained capability gains. |
The report brings together nine chapters, enterprise case studies, and practical frameworks to help L&D teams build a workforce skilling strategy that delivers measurable business impact.
