Talent professionals must stay on top of critical trends and anticipate their impact on organizations and their workforce while solving potential challenges in advance. At ATD23, we focused on three critical trends that will shape talent development for years to come.

Below is a summary of the various audience comments from our lively discussions and my suggestions for what we, as talent professionals, should focus on in the coming months to future-ready our people and organization.

Trend #1: Generational Disruption

The pandemic created a three-year delay in academic skills and emotional development, leading to increased mental health challenges for Gen Z and Gen Alpha students. This gap will play out for the next 20 years and soon hit our doors as they join the workforce. Both generations are highly focused on purpose-driven organizations committed to equality and the environment—this shapes their behaviors as consumers and future employees.

Audience comments:

“Mental health is a top priority.”

“We are already seeing these issues in higher education.”

“Embracing that we can’t go back to the way things were pre-pandemic.”

“We need to address younger generations’ expectations of how quickly things change in workplaces and their career expectations.”

“Be prepared to tell the story of your organization’s purpose and the social good it does.”

Suggestions for Action:

• Take time to attend to your mental health and well-being. Many of us still feel the impact of burnout but have been focused on others. Now is the time to rest and recover.

• Start exploring the traits and characteristics of Gen Z and Gen Alpha, considering what it means for your organization and industry.

• Identify the skills and knowledge you expect from new hires and analyze which gaps you will likely need to fill in coming years.

• Design solutions into your current learning paths for hiring and onboarding new employees. Also, train your managers on how to navigate this shift.

Trend #2: Creating Informed Citizens

Recent shifts in education (for example, banned books, altered curricula, and threats to academic freedom) are creating noticeable gaps in knowledge and frameworks around important topics like DEI. Consider this speech by Makya Little, a parent and DEI educator at the CIA. In addition, a lack of critical thinking skills and science literacy continue to affect worker readiness to respond effectively to climate change and the pandemic. Finally, the World Economic Forum states that 375 million workers globally will need to be reskilled by 2030.

Audience comments:

“We need to understand what frameworks are missing and their impact.”

“We should expect to deliver additional training to close gaps.”

“We need to focus on relevant content creation and practice opportunities.”

Suggestions for Action:

• Analyze the curriculum shifts in the states where you source talent and follow trends in high school and higher education to determine if/how many gaps are closed there.

• Create and expand content around critical thinking, DEI frameworks, and science literacy and weave them into existing training initiatives and learning paths.

• Build a strategy for upskilling your workforce during the next 7–10 years.

• Prepare and train your managers to navigate the shifting preparedness of incoming employees.

Trend #3: 4IR, ChatGPT, and the Metaverse

The talent development landscape is rapidly transforming, superpowered by ChatGPT, AI, the Metaverse, and other life-altering technologies. As part of the 4th industrial revolution, this accelerating rise in tech requires an equal rise in emotional intelligence and critical thinking to combat the increased risk of misinformation and fraud.

Audience comments:

“Already seeing this in higher ed.”

“Overwhelming—could go in so many directions.”

“Need to assess what we can/can’t do in using this for work.”

“Copyright and privacy implications. Bias will be worse before it gets better.”

Suggestions for Action:

• Start playing with the tech in your work, for example, using it to draft training outlines or analyze program evaluations.

• Intentionally and frequently explore implications for your organization and industry (this will be ever-changing, so lean into ongoing learning).

• Design ways to help your senior leaders understand the rapidly changing landscape.

• Utilize this opportunity to engage employees with critical thinking skills by applying it to AI in the workplace.

Thank you to all who attended ATD23 in San Diego this year. Each of you made valuable contributions as we explored these trends and what they mean for the talent development field. I hope you’ll continue to explore these trends and others as they arise. As you engage your curiosity and empower your lifelong learning, you’ll naturally enhance the experience of your people and organization.

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