#workplace-learning

#workplace-learning

Classic training setups are optimized for control. You assign courses, enforce deadlines, and measure completion. However, it carries much less value when you need to prove that trainees' behavior changed in a way that the learning objectives mapped out. Learning is decontextualized. Courses exist separately from daily work. There's no visible peer influence. Learners don't see how others apply knowledge. Feedback is delayed or absent. Questions go unanswered, and insights disappear. Motivation is external. People learn to comply, not to improve.

The Big Four firm has limited hiring for new associates in the advisory division to 13 offices, Yolanda Seals-Coffield, chief people and inclusion officer for PwC US, told Business Insider in an interview. Previously, entry-level consulting hires could join any of PwC's 72 US office locations. But since fall 2025, advisory associates have been assigned to one of 13 offices, which include key markets like New York, San Francisco, and Washington, DC.

AI is forcing the Big Four to rethink how work - and workers - are defined. The generalist consultant is out, and technical skills and deep industry expertise are in. PwC has launched what it's calling the "Learning Collective," a new workplace training initiative designed for the realities of the AI era. It's a broad rethink of how learning happens inside one of the world's largest professional services firms. "Skills, not titles, are the currency of this new era," the firm said in a press release.

Learning today doesn't usually look broken. It looks like a well-run treadmill, always on, always moving, quietly exhausting everyone. New initiatives, new tools, new priorities. New "must-have" skills. Even when learning is thoughtfully designed, there's a nagging sense that nothing sticks because nothing gets a chance to. People finish the course, grab the badge, and move on to the next thing before the last thing has had time to show up in how they work.

In a constantly changing workplace shaped by evolving technology and demanding customers, learning and upskilling are no longer optional; they are essential. Therefore, employees should be adaptable to shifting job requirements to stay relevant and competitive. Workplace learning today is more than just on-the-job training. It has become more dynamic. Bite-sized study modules, mobile-first lessons, and AI-based personalized learning have replaced traditional, classroom-style training sessions, making learning more accessible and convenient for on-the-go learners.

Workplace learning is changing fast, and L&D teams are feeling the pressure. Employees expect training to be relevant, engaging, and easily accessible, while leaders want programs that scale quickly and deliver tangible results. At the same time, L&D managers and corporate trainers are asked to do more with fewer resources. This is where AI prompts for corporate trainers are starting to reshape how workplace learning is designed and delivered.

A new report on workplace mentoring from the Association of Business Mentors (ABM), Unlocking Impact, highlights a clear tension: While 70% of businesses say that mentoring boosts performance and 98% would recommend it, 37% admit that they struggle to measure outcomes. It's one thing to feel that mentoring is beneficial for us. It's quite another to know and be able to prove its efficacy.

"Learning experience platforms are digital solutions that personalize the learning and development experiences for individual employees," says Zachary Chertok, research manager at IDC.

Learning at work is evolving. As roles become more complex and skills gaps widen, organisations need smarter ways to develop their people.

A digital adoption platform (DAP) integrates with the tools employees use, providing real-time guidance through processes, making learning practical and contextual.