How people think about workplace learning is shifting. After another year dominated by the opportunities and uncertainties of AI, business leaders are turning their attention to what really matters when deciding on an L&D strategy – measurable business outcomes. As talent needs change and the pressure to upskill grows, 2026 will see more businesses prioritise upskilling, reskilling and continuous learning as a core focus of their overall business strategy.
Harry Chapman-Walker (pictured, above), CEO of Kallidus, Europe’s #1 ranked corporate learning and talent platform on G2, shares his top 10 considerations for businesses looking to build an L&D strategy that directly correlates with performance in the year ahead…
- Skills-based AI learning will become the default
The majority of businesses are changing how they operate by migrating from having fixed job titles to skills-first talent strategies. This allows companies to focus on their employees’ specific capabilities. For example, how adaptable an employee is or how strategic they are. This approach helps them to align employee learning with business outcomes, helping teams close the capability gaps faster and directly supporting agility and performance.
However, organisations that don’t embrace AI or rethink how they introduce and evolve skills work will find it difficult to succeed with a skills-based approach. Rolling out a framework once to the entire organisation isn’t enough; it needs to be iterative, supported by technology and integrated into day-to-day workflows to drive real adoption and impact.
- There will be more focus on performance and business outcomes
In the new year, learning functions will be fully embedded into business strategy, using analytics to demonstrate clear, measurable impact on performance, retention and risk reduction. Success will no longer be judged by course completions or login rates, but by business outcomes, proving L&D’s role as a core enabler of innovation, agility and competitive advantage. Far from being a cost centre, L&D will become a driver of growth, transformation and sustained ROI.
- AI-driven learning will allow for more personalisation than ever before
There are many benefits to having AI in training. Undoubtedly, it will be utilised to enable personalised learning paths in 2026. It will also allow the opportunity for businesses to adapt course content to individual roles, skills and goals. Through the use of AI coaches, automated quizzes and dynamic recommendations, this technology will empower a whole new level of personalised learning. The benefit of this? Employees will get relevant training, whilst employers can be safe in the knowledge that retention levels on courses and efficiency of courses will only improve.
However, L&D teams must work hard to ensure they don’t become over-reliant on the use of AI. Organisations still need to invest time in evaluating whether chatbots genuinely improve learning outcomes and performance, or whether they simply become a more polished, conversational version of a cluttered SharePoint site.
- Integrating learning into workflows will become the norm
Training has slowly been incorporated into workflows. In 2026, this will become commonplace, with integrations into tools like Slack, Teams, CRMs and so on. This means employees can learn while they work. Context-switching is eliminated, which increases productivity as learning becomes a seamless, continuous experience.
- We are entering the age of continuous reskilling
In a fast-changing work environment, it is important to have a continuous learning culture in place. This is why more organisations than ever will move towards proactive reskilling to allow employees to constantly meet new business needs. This will mean skills are kept relevant, and teams can remain high-performing amid technological disruption. However, it will take time to truly embed this, given the demands on L&D teams and shrinking resources.
- Leadership and human skills will remain a critical focus
With AI affording increased personalisation, remote work becoming the norm, and a shift toward skills-first talent practices, business leaders will have a critical role in keeping teams connected and ensuring L&D initiatives truly deliver. However, it is essential that these leaders are equipped with real ‘human’ skills. That means having good emotional intelligence, creative thinking, problem-solving, empathy, and an ability to foster psychological safety. These are all essential qualities when it comes to helping people feel valued, supported and part of a cohesive team.
- Compliance training will evolve from a tickbox exercise to a performance enabler
In the past, compliance has been seen as a chore – something to tick off the list. In 2026, however, learning will move beyond mandatory modules to embedded skills-based frameworks. This will allow businesses to enable ethical behaviour, data security and responsible AI use, building risk-aware, high-performing teams rather than just meeting regulations.
- Development isn’t a single approach
We will move beyond the idea that an LMS filled with long, dated eLearning modules can solve every development need or serve as the only place people learn. Effective L&D uses a blended approach: micro-learning, modular content, simple handouts, workshops, coaching, on-the-job practice and more.
The goal isn’t to create more content, but to choose the right solution for the performance issue at hand. Not every challenge requires a course, and not every skill gap is fixed by adding another SCORM package. Shifting away from “LMS + eLearning = the answer” frees L&D teams from weeks of building bloated courses and allows them to focus on high-impact, meaningful interventions that actually improve performance.
- An over-reliance on AI content creation
As mentioned previously, AI-generated content is the latest trend in L&D, promising faster turnaround times and increased efficiency. Vendors (including authoring tools) are rapidly releasing solutions that make it easier than ever to produce courses, guides, quizzes and resources with a single prompt, which fuels the belief that more content automatically equals better learning. But while AI content creation has value and can streamline parts of the process, the hype risks pushing organisations into a volume-over-impact mindset. If we’re not careful, we’ll flood learners with generic, low-value material that doesn’t drive performance, but instead clutters learning ecosystems and ultimately creates more noise than clarity.
AI will support content creation, but it cannot replace thoughtful design, performance diagnosis or the strategic decisions that ensure learning leads to real behavioural change.
- L&D as the #1 retention strategy
Finally, in 2026, career development will surpass compensation as the top driver of retention. It’s as if roles are evolving faster than job descriptions right now, and many employees are questioning whether their current skills will still be relevant in the years ahead. Back in 2023, the World Economic Forum had already stated that 44% of workers’ core skills are expected to change by 2027. It reflects a sense of uncertainty across the workforce that has been bubbling under the surface for some time. And with the advancement of AI, it’s fair to assume this percentage will be far higher in 2026. As such, companies that provide clear learning pathways and visible growth opportunities stand to attract and retain the best talent, while those that don’t will see higher attrition.
Conclusion:
L&D isn’t about chasing the newest technology but building environments where people can grow, adapt and contribute to meaningful business outcomes. The organisations that continue to develop their skills strategies and learning cultures accordingly will ensure a more capable and resilient workforce. Resiliency and agility moving into 2026 will be key. Given the rate at which capability gaps have already widened in 2025, and pressures have mounted on existing operational models, those who don’t prioritise L&D are at risk of feeling the consequences of changing workforce needs sooner than they might have predicted.
