Valamis’ Global Survey Reveals the State of Learning & Development in the Workplace 2020

Boston, USA, 24 September 2020. Valamis, the global leader in digital learning technologies and workforce development, published results from the “Global Survey on the State of Learning & Development (L&D) in the Workplace Report,” which includes over 3000 people across more than 20 industries were surveyed from entry-level to C-Suite executives in organizations from Finland, France, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, the US, and the UK.

Valamis conducted its 2nd annual “Global Survey on the State of Learning & Development (L&D) in the Workplace Report”, collecting insight into the shifting global priorities, challenges, behaviors, attitudes, and technologies in use for corporate learning and development, with additional research into the impact of COVID-19.

The importance of learning & development in the workforce

Findings from the survey show that roughly 93% of respondents globally believe updating knowledge and skills are important to an organization’s success and more than 50% of executives and the C-Suite value skills development as extremely important to an organization’s future success. Although the importance of learning and development has been recognized in every country surveyed, over 74% of respondents believe their organizations are actively encouraging the workforce to develop their skills and nearly 56% of respondents had a dedicated person or team responsible for learning and development at their organization.

Time to learn

Despite the globally acknowledged importance of learning and development, for the second consecutive year conducting the survey, the biggest challenge plaguing learning and development within organizations is a lack of time or perceived time affluence with regards to learning. 48% of respondents globally denoted a lack of time as the biggest challenge for learning and development. Interestingly, survey participants at the executive and C-suite level note that they use their digital learning environment the most frequently (Nearly 30% using it every day) of all survey participants.

Tools in place for corporate learning

25% of respondents specify not having the right tools in place as one of the top three challenges for learning & development. Approximately 15% of respondents demarcate that their organization does not have a digital learning environment in place at their organization, and the Netherlands has the highest percentage of respondents of all the countries surveyed that specify they have a Learning Management System (LMS) (24%) or Learning Experience Platform (LXP or LEP) (20%) in place, whereas the United States (28%), United Kingdom (29%), and Germany (28%) have the highest percentages of respondents relying on online courses or Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Finland has the highest number of respondents (18%) that suggest their organization has no digital learning tools in place.

COVID-19 & L&D

Approximately 70% of executives within the global survey express they value digital learning and development more as a result of COVID-19, and over 67% of all global participants in the survey believe digital learning and development can help minimize the effects of shocks and stresses of future events.

“2020 has been a challenging year for many organizations and individuals worldwide. Our global survey on the state of learning and development highlights an internationally growing acknowledgment from the C-suite that L&D is critical to the success of their organizations, and with the right tools in place organizations can adapt and reskill in the face of unforeseen events,” said Janne Hietala, Chief Visionary Officer, Valamis.

Download the report here.

*Please note the survey results are in English

For more information

Janne Hietala

Chief Visionary Officer

janne.hietala@valamis.com

About Valamis

Valamis is a digital learning company specializing in workforce development, and the developer of Valamis – Learning Experience Platform. Valamis’ customers are large organizations spanning all industries—predominantly finance and insurance, complex manufacturing, and professional services. Headquartered in Joensuu, Finland, Valamis operates internationally with offices in the US, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Russia, and India.