Dr. Prem Das Maheshwari, Business Director – South Asia, D2L shares, “With generative AI redefining white-collar work, individuals are not just content with securing a job but seek a future-proof career. A recent survey done on ‘upskilling trends in India in 2024’ indicated that 85% of Indians believe that upskilling is necessary to future-proof their career. Interestingly, 93% of individuals with more than 9 years of experience consider upskilling to be critical for career growth.”
Where it can help the professionals
Maheshwari adds that mid-career professionals are likely to favor e-learning due to its flexibility, accessibility, and self-paced learning modalities. E-learning has a direct impact on career advancement, allowing professionals to increase their professional value, acquire skills for upward growth, and transition into different industries. Equipping mid-senior level management with upskilling tools also ensures organizational growth and increases workplace productivity.
Maheshwari suggests that in terms of tools, mid-senior professionals are opting for a wide range of e-learning modalities to enhance their skill set—ranging from MOOCs to formalized higher education courses to webinars. eLearning authoring tools also enable educators and trainers to create interactive learning content efficiently. Additionally, microlearning through short-format videos and bite-sized articles is gaining popularity due to its ease of accessibility and consumability.
Siddharth Bannerjee, CEO UNIVO Education, shares from their experience, “We see mid-senior career professionals approach e-learning with a distinct focus on immediate career impact. They seek out courses and tools that directly address their current job roles, enhance specific skills, and lead to tangible career advancement. This contrasts with students and fresh graduates who often use e-learning for foundational knowledge-building and exploring potential career paths. We observe that for graduates, the curriculum needs to be more industry-ready which should provide them employment-ready skills.”
Improving the outcomes
Maheshwari adds that, “through cloud computing, organizations and learning institutions can create a shared pool of learning resources and multimedia tools, enabling better collaboration across the teaching fraternity. Gamification and AR/VR technologies are further transforming the learning experience.”Similarly, Banerjee refers to the integration of social learning elements, such as collaborative projects and peer-to-peer feedback, into online courses. He adds, “The World Economic Forum predicts that by 2025, 70% of internet users will be mobile-only, highlighting the importance of mobile-optimized e-learning content. We are seeing a growing emphasis on personalized learning pathways in the corporate realm.” Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are being used to tailor e-learning experiences to individual needs and career goals. This ensures that mid-senior professionals are not just upskilling but doing so in a way that maximizes their potential for career growth.”
New forms of certifications and learning
Bannerjee decodes that as online degrees become more mainstream, there is a sign from learners and universities to offer the same. “Another trend which we’re seeing is the rise of microcredentials. These short, focused certifications allow professionals to quickly validate specific skills and knowledge areas, adding valuable credentials to their resumes,” he shares. This approach is gaining traction due to its flexibility and relevance in the rapidly evolving job market.
As a broader context for the experts who can help professionals build the right skills, Maheshwari shares that teachers and faculty members are not just enablers of upskilling but are learners themselves. This enables the evolution of pedagogy to suit the needs of the 21st-century learner, thereby improving learning outcomes.