The 2026 Enterprise Learning Wake Up Call
The AI Readiness Gap
AI adoption is accelerating, but readiness is lagging. This global study reveals why skills (not tools) are the true unit of AI readiness, and what enterprises must do to close the gap.
Enterprise learning today
The AI readiness gap
Enterprises are moving fast on AI, but their people are being left behind. That’s the AI Readiness Gap, and the learning strategies meant to close it aren’t keeping up.
There is a disconnect between AI adoption and application
79%
8 out of 10 learning teams say they already leverage AI to generate content, assessments, and recommendations
91%
9 out of 10 learning leaders say their organizations have yet to fully redefine their workflows with AI
35%
Over a third of learning leaders say they’re still in the experimental stage when it comes to AI
The three biggest pressures faced by learning leaders today are AI adoption and fluency, developing skills in the workforce, and business transformation.
40.4%
AI adoption and fluency
24.2%
Skills
12.5%
Business transformation
“Most organizations have high levels of individual experimentation (people using AI tools to complete isolated tasks), but then they return to the exact same operating workflows they already had 5 years ago.”
Markus Bernhardt
Principal, Endeavor Intelligence
Both learners and leaders agree that AI fluency is their number one priority. But it’s not the whole picture. Human skills like communication, critical thinking, and creativity remain essential as AI reshapes work, guiding how technology is applied responsibly and effectively. AI may change the tools, but people remain the competitive advantage.
Skills prioritized for 2026
Leaders
Learners
AI literacy and AI applied skills
Role-specific technical or functional skills
Data literacy and analytics
Digital transformation skills
Leadership and people management
Change management and adaptability
Communication and collaboration
Critical thinking and problem solving
Customer- or partner-facing skills
Compliance and risk management
Sales or commercial skills
Innovation and creativity
Other
1 in 5 learners have not received any AI training
Despite being a priority, training isn’t keeping up with the specific skills learners need to apply AI in their roles.
Have you received training that helps you understand or use AI in your role?
The Friction
Why learning isn’t translating into performance
Learners are struggling to see how the training they receive builds the specific skills they need to perform and grow.
66%
of learners don’t feel fully supported by their organization.
57%
of learners feel training isn’t very relevant to their specific role.
56%
of learners lack full visibility into how learning impacts their career progression.
“Most AI training today focuses on general literacy or basic tool overviews. But this isn’t concrete or operational enough to change how people actually work.”
Sandra Loughlin, PhD
Chief Learning Scientist, EPAM Systems
The Tension
“Until organizations commit to building trusted, actionable skills data and tying it directly to real business problems, skills will remain a side initiative instead of the engine driving transformation throughout the organization.”
Koreen Pagano
CEO, Talent Rewire & Co-Founder, Rising Tide Cooperative
This is what surveyed learning leaders had to say…
24%
Less than a quarter of learning leaders report that learning is fully aligned with business strategy at their organization.
22%
More than 1 in 5 learning leaders struggle with stakeholder buy-in.
43%
Fewer than half of learning leaders feel very confident connecting learning to business results.
The Blueprint
Bridging the AI Readiness Gap
Learners are struggling to see how the training they receive builds the specific skills they need to perform and grow.
Listening to Learners
Maximizing the learning experience with AI
Recommendations and virtual coaching are among the top 5 ways learning leaders plan to leverage AI this year.
Analytics and insights
Virtual coaching
Chatbots
Personalized recommendations
Content authoring
Measuring What Matters
Aligning learning to business
Fewer than half of learning leaders feel very confident in connecting learning to business results, making it harder to justify investment and sustain momentum.
The good news is that many learning leaders are already measuring performance and business metrics in addition to completion data.
Which outcomes do you track to understand the impact of learning?
Performance metrics (sales, quality, productivity)
Behavior change or skill adoption
Employee engagement or NPS
Learner completion survey
Customer satisfaction or NPS
Retention or internal mobility
Product adoption
Time to first sale for partners
Customer churn
“Organizations aren’t struggling with AI because they lack data. They’re struggling because they don’t use it.”
Derek Mitchell
CEO & Founder, Gallus Insight
Skills Intelligence
A different approach to learning delivery
The need for skills development is urgent, with AI fluency highly prioritized by learning leaders. But organizations are still relying on static learning models, unable to keep pace with how quickly work, roles, and technologies are changing.
Skills intelligence offers a different approach, a fluid data-driven one for continuously detecting emerging capabilities, identifying gaps, delivering targeted learning and upskilling, and validating progress.
Success Index
Results from enterprises leveraging personalized learning and skills intelligence
These organizations moved beyond fragmented learning to build connected ecosystems powered by AI, enabling hyperpersonalization and skills intelligence. In doing so, they built systems ready for continuous change.
Personalized learning based on user role, and leveraged integrations to learn in the flow of work
90%
of employees report learning and development opportunities.
Rebuilt their learning operation from the ground up, allowing the learning team to become true strategic partners
800+
hours of learning admin time saved annually
Created an integrated HR ecosystem to develop talent using skills intelligence
€100M
in savings from internal mobility instead of external hiring
DIVE DEEPER INTO THE DATA
Learn more about what’s widening the AI Readiness Gap in enterprises in the full report.
See how you measure up
Want to see how ready you are for the future? Take our Learning Performance Index to find out.