AI proficiency is emerging as one of the UK’s new labour divides

In a labour market such as the UK’s – characterised by persistent shortages of qualified candidates – reducing investment in L&D is not a realistic option. The Resource and Talent Planning 2024 survey published by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the country’s leading HR body, shows that many organisations now accept they cannot close existing skills gaps solely through recruitment.

As a result, they have begun to reinforce internal development programs. The challenge here is that much of this training is still built on legacy structures designed for a more predictable industrial context, characterised by longer technological cycles and slower organisational change.

The British government has sought to understand the impact of corporate learning with greater precision. In its review A Rapid Review of Reviews on Learning and Development and Employee Engagement and Wellbeing, it concludes that L&D programs only deliver sustainable results when integrated into broader growth strategies. HR teams therefore need to define training models that align learning with business priorities. Organisations capable of doing this will be better positioned to translate AI adoption into real productivity gains.

In this context, specialist partners are proving increasingly important. Netex, a Spanish company with more than three decades of experience developing digital learning solutions for major corporations and public institutions, has witnessed the sector’s transformation first-hand – from early learning management systems to today’s data-driven, AI-enabled environments.

Its chief executive, Carlos Ezquerro, believes the shift in corporate priorities mirrors the government’s findings. “Learning has become a central component of business performance,” he says. “Companies are no longer looking for catalogues of courses, but for systems that connect people with the knowledge they need to progress in their roles.”

In the era of AI, organisations are relying on L&D to help them navigate the technological transition. “Structures and processes evolve constantly, but people are responsible for making that evolution possible. And they need support,” Ezquerro explains. He argues that corporate learning has moved away from simply scheduling courses towards managing knowledge more strategically and designing learning experiences that accompany digital transformation. “We work with organisations adopting more data-led operating models. Our job is to help them accelerate that shift by developing dynamic learning environments that evolve at the same rhythm as their business.”