Personalized Training 301: Learning for the Next-Gen Workforce

Emily Gerson

vendredi 23 janvier 2026

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It’s estimated that Generation Z employees (born between 1997 and the 2010s) will make up 74% of the global workforce by 2030. Your workforce is changing, altering employee needs and expectations, as well as traditional ways of working. This is a result of generational shifts and changes caused by technology.

Even amidst changes as tectonic as those of the AI era, the ability to change, adapt, doesn’t just depend on technology. It depends on people. And people need personalization. Especially younger generations entering the workforce. Future-focused organizations need to match new expectations for hyper-personalization and curation of learning content while building the skills the business needs. 

A New Development Flow for Changing Workforce Expectations

While every individual is different, understanding the generational tendencies that express themselves at work can help organizations integrate the workforce more successfully, both across generations and in anticipating different ways of working. 

Growing up on platforms like Netflix, TikTok, and Amazon, which constantly provide users personalized recommendations and feedback, younger generations like Gen Z may have greater expectations of tailored, on-demand content than their older counterparts. According to Involve, 81% of Gen Z like personalized ads, for example. 

If you ask someone in Gen Z how they learned a new skill last week, there is a good chance they’ll say ChatGPT. Randstad found that 75% of this generation uses AI to upskill. And why not? AI is responsive, engaging, and personalized.

But consider how that approach would fit into your current learning and training model. It likely wouldn’t. Gen Z employee training challenges the status quo. Without AI as part of your learning ecosystem, you could be missing the development needs of a growing portion of your workforce.

Designing the Best AI-Driven Personalized Training

According to Deloitte, Gen Zs “cite learning and development among the top three reasons they chose their current employer.” And if a majority of this generation is using AI for professional upskilling, your L&D program should start to reflect that preference as your workforce changes. To make employee development work for the next generation, AI needs to become a seamless part of your learning process and ecosystem. 

Leadership and Culture

With a technology as new as AI, employees need guidance and support to use it effectively. In addition to an organizational posture that supports AI use and experimentation, they need guardrails and use cases from IT and legal teams so they can proceed with confidence. Clarity is key, and when the entire workforce is informed and empowered, it makes it easier to weave AI into the culture.

Often, individual managers can play the role of AI learning lead, both by using AI for their own development and by supporting team members who do the same. Additionally, if your managers stay updated with what their teams are learning, they can call out wins and opportunities for growth when they happen.

Casey Adams, Vice President of Solutions Consulting and Enablement at Degreed, said it can be as simple as saying to an employee, “Hey, you learned this new thing with AI, show the team what you’re doing,” then giving them the platform to share their new skills. That acknowledgement recognizes modest achievements, creates an opportunity for collaboration, and builds a stronger team learning culture.

Technical Tools and Platforms for Personalized Learning

Often, many organizations focus first and foremost on AI tools and platforms. Investments in AI continue to grow year over year. We believe that the change starts and ends with people, but the training tools for corporate learning also play a key role, of course. There are a few capabilities you’ll want your AI to be able to perform in order to best support learning. 

For example, you’ll want the AI you use for L&D to have context, skill data, and key learning science principles built in. High interoperability, or the ability to work seamlessly with existing HR and IT platforms, is a must for adding AI-powered learning to the flow of work. And, a high level of interactivity within the AI tools will boost engagement.

This shift may take a companywide effort from managers, HR, and IT, but it won’t just benefit employees. It’s also essential for the health and growth of your business.

Maximizing Productivity for the New Generation of Workers

According to Randstad, “Gen Z has the highest attrition rate of any generation.” Averaging 1.1 year tenures in their first five years of work, Gen Z employees simply aren’t staying at companies as long as older generations used to, at least early in their careers. For companies that want to maximize employee value and expertise, this means more work to improve both retention and productivity during a notably shorter employee lifecycle. 

To start, businesses have to get their new hires up-to-speed as quickly and effectively as possible. Not only will that bring them to productivity quicker, but companies with formalized training programs have a 218% higher income per employee than those without. 

Personalization and AI are the keys to speeding up that initial time-to-readiness. If your organization can leverage AI to provide employees with tailored training that aligns with their skills, experiences, and proficiency levels, no learning moment will be wasted. Every minute will be spent on content that is directly relevant to the employee, which will also lead to higher engagement in that learning.

AI doesn’t replace the human side of learning, it accelerates it.

Learning to Adapt and Succeed in Business with Personalized Learning

If your workforce can learn, your workforce can adapt. And if it can adapt in this ever-changing climate, it can succeed long-term. Personalization is key to keeping the youngest generation of your workforce engaged as they enter and ramp up in today’s workplace.