Learning Professionals are Crucial to the AI Economy

The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2023 highlights the increasing importance of learning professionals in an AI-driven economy. As employers estimate that 44% of workers' skills will be disrupted in the next five years, the demand for cognitive, creative, and technology literacy skills is growing rapidly. In this blog post, we will examine the critical role learning professionals play in preparing the workforce for this AI economy.

Disrupted Skills and Growing Importance of Cognitive Skills

According to the report, cognitive skills are growing in importance the most quickly, reflecting the increasing significance of complex problem-solving in the workplace. Creative thinking is growing in importance slightly more rapidly than analytical thinking, and technology literacy is the third-fastest growing core skill. Socio-emotional attitudes such as curiosity and lifelong learning; resilience, flexibility, and agility; and motivation and self-awareness are also growing in importance. These findings underscore the need for learning professionals to create innovative and adaptable training programs to meet the demands of the AI economy.

Urgent Need for Training and Upskilling

The report states that six in 10 workers will require training before 2027, but only half of the workers have access to adequate training opportunities today. This highlights the vital role learning professionals play in creating and delivering training initiatives that focus on analytical thinking, creative thinking, AI and big data, leadership and social influence, resilience, flexibility and agility, and curiosity and lifelong learning. With two-thirds of companies expecting a return on investment on skills training within a year, learning professionals must design effective programs that enhance cross-role mobility, worker satisfaction, and productivity.

Corporate Upskilling Strategies vs. Workforce Importance

Interestingly, the skills that companies report to be increasing in importance the fastest are not always reflected in corporate upskilling strategies. This indicates that learning professionals must bridge the gap between strategic priorities and workforce needs by helping companies develop upskilling initiatives that focus on AI and big data, leadership and social influence, design and user experience, environmental stewardship, marketing and media, and networks and cybersecurity.

Addressing Skills Gaps and Talent Attraction

Organizations identify skills gaps and an inability to attract talent as the key barriers preventing industry transformation. Learning professionals can help companies address these challenges by designing and implementing programs that improve talent progression and promotion processes, offer effective reskilling and upskilling, and provide on-the-job training and coaching.

Conclusion

The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2023 highlights the critical role learning professionals play in preparing the workforce for the AI economy. By developing innovative training programs that focus on cognitive, creative, and technology literacy skills, and by helping companies bridge the gap between strategic priorities and workforce needs, learning professionals can play a pivotal role in transforming the workforce for the challenges and opportunities of the AI-driven future.