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Five Upskilling Trends to Watch in 2025

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As we start 2025 the world of workforce development and upskilling will continue to evolve. These five trends highlight significant opportunities for early adopters who are prepared to embrace change and innovate. Here’s how organizations and institutions can position themselves for success in 2025.

1. Doing More with Less
In 2025, constrained immigration policies will reshape workforce dynamics, particularly in Canada and the Western world. With declining public support for large-scale immigration and shifts in government priorities, businesses and institutions will face increasing pressure to rely on existing human capital. For organizations, this means investing more in upskilling and reskilling their current workforce to fill skill gaps traditionally addressed through temporary international labour. Post-secondary institutions must also adapt, as finite undergraduate numbers force them to reduce costs and seek new revenue streams. Forward-thinking institutions will pivot toward workforce training and professional development for mid-career workers, creating sustainable opportunities despite declining international student revenues.

2. Embracing the Impacts of AI
Artificial intelligence will continue to revolutionize workplace productivity in 2025. Businesses that thrive will be those that embrace AI as a tool for enhancing efficiency and innovation. The demand for professionals skilled in leveraging AI to maximize output will rise sharply. For post-secondary institutions, the challenge lies in equipping students with the skills to integrate AI into their studies ethically. Personalized, AI-driven learning tools offer a significant opportunity to tailor education to individual skill gaps and needs, creating more adaptive and engaging learning environments. Organizations that adopt AI training now will be better positioned to lead in a more competitive marketplace.

3. Rethinking Credentials
As labour markets tighten due to demographic constraints and reduced immigration, traditional credentialing models will face disruption. Employers can no longer afford to rely solely on degrees as gatekeepers to employment. Instead, they will focus on demonstrated competencies—hiring candidates who can prove their ability to meet organizational needs, regardless of formal credentials. This shift will also pressure regulated professions to adapt, with increasing demands for flexibility in foreign credential recognition and domestic equivalency. Organizations and educational institutions prioritizing competency-based hiring and training will be at the forefront of this evolution.

4. The Rise of Digital Twins
Digital twins are set to transform training methodologies in 2025. Industries like manufacturing and automotive are already building virtual replicas of their facilities, enabling staff to train in immersive 2D and 3D environments. These virtual learning experiences, grounded in realistic simulations and formative feedback, will accelerate skill acquisition while reducing costs and inefficiencies. The balance between virtual training and real-world application will be key. Companies leveraging digital twins alongside hands-on learning will cultivate higher proficiency and preparedness among their workforce. This trend offers an unparalleled opportunity for organizations to revolutionize how they approach complex and technical skills training.

5. Being Human in an AI World
As AI and technology continue to reshape workplaces, the human element will become increasingly vital. Empathetic leadership that prioritizes emotional intelligence and collaboration will drive innovation and engagement. Leaders who excel at fostering meaningful connections within their teams will create environments that inspire creativity and resilience. Additionally, organizations will begin integrating learning with the broader employee experience, ensuring that training is seen as a valuable component of career development. This holistic approach will motivate employees to embrace upskilling opportunities, creating a win-win for both individuals and organizations.

Looking Ahead
The trends shaping 2025 highlight immense opportunities for those ready to adapt and innovate. Organizations can thrive in a rapidly changing world by investing in upskilling programs, embracing AI, and prioritizing human-centric leadership. Early adopters who align their strategies with these trends will lead the way in building a workforce prepared for the challenges and opportunities of the future.

Daring to make the eduverse a tool for justice

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Educators have raised concerns about equitable access to eduverse technologies, particularly regarding hardware and internet access. The question of accessibility is especially relevant for students from marginalized backgrounds who may already face barriers in the traditional education system. Another important question to consider is how accessible is the content of eduverse experiences to diverse groups of students?

Non-privileged learners are often under-represented in educational systems. Their experiences often fail to be reflected by the curricula they engage with, and they might be learning material that in fact reinforces systemic injustices. Eduverse technology might be able to address this issue by reimagining the way we approach knowledge production within the classroom. The eduverse—a virtual learning environment within the metaverse designed specifically for educational purposes—offers a chance to rethink how knowledge is created and shared. The metaverse itself is a shared digital space where users interact in real-time through immersive technologies like virtual and augmented reality.

If the eduverse can transform and transcend the physical limitations of classrooms, why not use it to transcend other barriers to fair and robust education? By breaking down geographical and cultural boundaries, eduverse technology enables global interaction on an unprecedented scale. This opens the door for a more inclusive, student-centered approach to learning, aligning with the principles of open and critical pedagogies. These teaching philosophies centre students’s lived experiences, and emphasize students’ abilities to create, rather than simply absorb information. This way of viewing education aligns with the eduverse’s approach, which centres the value of experiential learning.

Eduverse technology offers teachers the opportunity to take seriously students’ historically marginalized real-world experiences as they bring them into life-like virtual experiences. Students will have the chance to connect with students like them whose experiences might contradict the norm, and they will also be more uninhibited than ever in having the chance to learn from students who have had different experiences from them.

The eduverse is a new paradigm for learning. If educators can use it to not only enhance traditional learning methods but in fact critique and better them, its potential for taking education to new places might be more immense than we thought.

4 Ways to Transform Education and Close the Skills Gap

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At the recent Accelerate 2024 conference, Propero Learning Systems highlighted a pressing issue: the widening gap between post-secondary institutions and industry. A staggering 68% of industry associations report no meaningful collaboration with educational institutions, and even fewer see successful outcomes when they try. This isn’t just an academic problem – it’s a strategic challenge. But instead of lamenting, we need to innovate. Here are four actionable steps to rethink how education and industry work together to build a stronger, future-ready workforce.

1. Accelerate Curriculum Development
The traditional curriculum model is too slow for today’s rapidly evolving industries. By the time new courses roll out, much of the technical knowledge is already outdated.
Solution: Adopt real-time collaboration models where industry partners co-create courses, ensuring they stay current with technological and workforce trends. Think agile processes for education—because speed matters.

2. Build Bridges, Not Bureaucracies
Bureaucratic red tape is a creativity killer. Curriculum approval processes often stifle industry involvement, leaving educational institutions struggling to adapt to real-world needs.
Solution: Break down barriers by creating flexible pathways for industry input. Streamline governance structures to allow faster, more meaningful collaboration. Make education a partner, not a silo.

3. Make Continuing Education Affordable
Collaboration often falls apart due to cost. Economic models for partnerships between education and industry can be prohibitively expensive, leaving both sides frustrated.
Solution: Develop economically viable continuing education models that benefit both institutions and employers. Affordable, accessible programs will not only upskill the workforce but also create a steady talent pipeline.

4. Adopt a Mindset of Continuous Adaptation
Static systems won’t survive in a dynamic economy. Education must evolve from slow-moving, insular processes to agile, responsive ecosystems.
Solution: Foster a culture of continuous improvement within academic institutions. Embrace innovation, invest in new frameworks, and empower leaders to deconstruct outdated paradigms. Flexibility is the key to staying ahead.

The Time to Act Is Now
This isn’t just about solving today’s problems—it’s about creating a future where education and industry are equal partners in success. Together, we can close the skills gap, accelerate workforce readiness, and drive sustained economic growth. Join us. Let’s reimagine the way we prepare for the future – one innovative step at a time.

Beyond the Status Quo: A Call for Transformative Educational Partnerships

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Propero Learning Systems’ recent Accelerate2024 conference brought into sharp focus a critical challenge facing our national skills ecosystem: the growing disconnect between post-secondary institutions and industry sectors. A recent survey of 102 national industry associations found a staggering 68% have not collaborated with post-secondary institutions to co-develop curriculum or create meaningful skills pathways. Among those who tried, few reported successful outcomes. The barriers are familiar to many of us: bureaucratic timelines that render technical knowledge obsolete before courses launch, curriculum control mechanisms that limit industry input, and economic models that make collaboration prohibitively expensive. These are not just academic problems—they are strategic challenges that directly impact our ability to develop the talent pipeline our organizations desperately need.

But this is not a moment for frustration; it is an opportunity for strategic redesign. Our most innovative companies have always solved complex problems by creating new frameworks, and now we must apply that same creative thinking to skills development. We need to move beyond traditional engagement models and develop dynamic, real-time collaboration mechanisms that allow for rapid curriculum adaptation, meaningful industry input, and economically viable continuing education programs.

The economic development implications are profound. By creating more responsive skills ecosystems, we can dramatically reduce talent gaps, accelerate workforce readiness, and enhance our national and regional productivity. This requires a willingness to challenge existing structures, invest in new collaborative models, and view educational institutions not as distant entities, but as critical strategic partners in our economic future.

This is not an occasion for resignation, but for innovation. Our academic institutions have always been at the forefront of societal transformation, and now we are called to reimagine our approach to skills development. The traditional model of curriculum development—insulated and slow-moving—is no longer tenable in an economy characterized by rapid technological shifts and evolving workforce needs. We must become more agile, more responsive, and more collaborative.

The challenge before us is to deconstruct the existing paradigms. We need to create flexible, dynamic pathways for industry input, accelerate our curriculum development processes, and develop more economically accessible continuing education models. This requires breaking down internal silos, re-examining our governance structures, and cultivating a mindset of continuous adaptation. Our institutions have the creative genius to lead this transformation—we simply need the collective will to do so.

The time for admiration of these challenges has passed. Now is the moment of action. We invite academic and industry leaders across sectors to join us in pioneering a new approach to skills ecosystem development—one where industry and education are true, responsive partners in preparing our workforce for the future. Together, we can transform our approach, close the skills gap, and position our organizations and our nation for sustained economic success.

Canada’s Productivity Plunge: Time to Upskill Canadians

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Understanding Labour Productivity

Judging by recent headlines there are cries of concern over the fact that Canada’s labour productivity has stalled over the past eighteen months. But statistics released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) indicate Canada’s labour productivity growth has been lagging behind the United States and other G7 countries since at least the the 1980’s.

What is labour productivity and why should Canadians be concerned? Labour productivity is a broad measure of real gross domestic product (GDP) by hours worked across the economy. According to economists the measure is a key indicator of whether quality of life in Canada is improving or not. In the words of Pedro Antunes, chief economist at the Conference Board of Canada: “What it really boils down to is a sense that if we are able to generate more income with each hour worked, then we’re better off for it.”

The Complexity of Canada’s Productivity Problem

According to BMO chief economist Doug Porter the issue is complex and there’s no easy solution for Canada’s productivity problem: “If there was a straightforward formula to dealing with Canada’s perennial productivity problem, it would have been long since unleashed.”

Immigration and Productivity

One of the foremost ways Canada’s policy makers have tried to address this problem has been to import new workers to sustain output. But the majority of these same new workers end up employed in the least productive sectors of the economy- retail, food and accommodation, rather than filling growing skills gaps. As evidence, a recent Statistics Canada report cited the fact that nearly 60 percent of Canadians working in the growing food delivery and ridesharing sector are landed immigrants. With a greater investment in skills training and development these workers could work in jobs in demand and with higher productivity.

Enhancing Skills Training for Adults

As part of turning this slide in productivity around, the OECD says Canada needs to take a look at its current adult learning system and questions whether it is ‘well equipped to deal with the pressing challenges associated with changing demand for skills.’ Not only new workers could benefit from enhanced skills training and development but also workers currently in the labour force whose careers have stalled or whose skills have become obsolete due to technological change and automation. The OECD suggests that ‘Canada’s adult learning system should equip adults with the foundational skills needed to weather evolving changes in skills demand including, social skills, verbal, reasoning and quantitative abilities’.

We need to help workers become more productive by providing upskilling opportunities to respond to growing skills gaps that are hampering economic growth. The OECD points to a key challenge being how to engage older and low-skilled workers who traditionally have low access to adult learning opportunities. The answer they say lies in ‘a sharper focus on flexibility, guidance, financing and the impact of training’.

A Call to Prioritize Skills Training

While not the only solution to our plunging productivity woes, a long overdue examination of our skills training system and our investment in training by both public bodies and industry are both attainable and in the long-term, beneficial to economic growth and wellbeing.

It is evident that to date our skills training efforts have not improved labour productivity. In fact our current approach may actually be impeding it. If we are to heed the guidance of the OECD and other economic experts we need to shift and accelerate our skills training efforts. We need to embrace the fact that our collective skills development efforts represent a single dynamic ecosystem. This requires collaborating and acknowledging that no single entity alone can address the multi-faceted challenges we face. We should be striving to create a shared approach that emphasises skills development and work-integrated learning and maximize the synergies that exist between formal education, on-the-job training and retraining opportunities.

By making skills development a higher priority, integrating real-world application of skills, and re-thinking our credentialing systems we can enhance and accelerate our efforts to address shifting demographics, labour markets and skills gaps to drive economic growth and productivity as well as enhance social inclusion.

How Do We Build a Skills Ecosystem for a Future Economy?

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Embrace the Concept of a Skills Ecosystem

The first step to building a resilient skills training system in Canada is to embrace the concept that all our collective skills training endeavours comprise a skills ecosystem, that is a dynamic and interconnected framework that encompasses the efforts of industry, government, higher education executives, and economic development policymakers as they relate to skills development. The purpose of this interdependent and interconnected system is to cultivate, develop, and harness the diverse range of skills needed to thrive in a changing economic landscape. The defining characteristics of a healthy skills ecosystem are collaboration, innovation, and an unwavering commitment to lifelong learning.

Addressing Global Workforce Development Challenges

Canada is just part of a global economy facing daunting challenges related to navigating the complexities of workforce development, economic growth and advancement of society. Fundamental to achieving our collective economic and societal goals is building and supporting a skilled workforce. If we are to successfully address the challenges presented by shifting labour markets and bridge existing and emerging skills gaps we will need to rethink our approach to and support for skills development, that is our skills ecosystem.

The Importance of Collaboration

By recognizing that our collective skills development efforts are a single dynamic ecosystem we emphasize not only the importance of skills development but also the interconnectedness of its various stakeholders. This includes industry leaders and government bodies – from the policy developers to the higher education executives.

The success of our collective endeavours rests on our commitment to collaboration. In order to create and sustain a robust skills ecosystem, we must first acknowledge that no single entity alone can address the multifaceted challenges we face. State agencies, industries, individual firms, and educational institutions must come together and pool their diverse and substantial resources, expertise, and insights. This shared approach will ensure that skills development efforts are not only aligned with the needs of the economy but also tailored to the specific requirements of society, industry, and region.

Work-Integrated Learning and Lifelong Learning

These collaborative efforts need to be supported by an approach that emphasises skills development and work-integrated learning, and by adopting an integrated model recognizing the importance of lifelong learning and the synergy between formal education, on-the-job training, and retraining opportunities.

Work-integrated learning initiatives, such as cooperative education programs and partnerships with industry leaders, serve as the vital bridges between theoretical knowledge and practical application. By providing high quality work-based learning opportunities, we enhance students’ employability and equip them with the skills necessary to navigate real-world challenges.

Aligning with Future Economic Growth

It is paramount that our skills development initiatives be aligned with future economic growth. Effective workforce planning and development are essential for shaping the economic trajectory of regions and industries. A skilled workforce not only drives economic stability and innovation but also fosters greater social cohesion. By enhancing regional and sectoral understanding of the current workforce landscape and anticipating future needs, we can help focus our efforts on areas for growth and development.

A Skills-First Approach to Hiring and Talent Development

Realizing the full potential of our skills ecosystem calls for a transition to a skills-first approach in hiring and talent development. This paradigm shift puts a greater priority on competencies rather than formal qualifications. It is a much more democratic approach to ensuring broader access to employment opportunities and to increasing labour market efficiency. Implementing this approach requires close collaboration between CEOs, policymakers, and HR teams.

The Role of Higher Education Institutions

Higher education institutions (HEIs) also play a pivotal role in this ecosystem by integrating real-world application of skills into their curriculums. By providing work-based learning opportunities, co-developing curriculum and forging new partnerships with industry leaders, HEIs enhance students’ job readiness and career prospects. Strong social ties among students, faculty, and employers enable easily navigable pathways for students’ careers, making sure they are equipped with the latest skills demanded by the market.

Successfully navigating the changing nature of work also requires a ‘credentials rethink’ within higher education. Micro credentials are just one possible enhancement. They offer a flexible and diverse approach to upskilling and training and they can align with the needs of both learners and employers. HEIs also need to develop transparent standards and assessments that validate competency-based skills as a means of paving the way for alternate degree pathways that cater to the demands of the labor market

Collaboration is Key

Collaboration among industry executives, government officials, policymakers, and higher education executives is not just desirable – it is indispensable. Building a resilient and adaptable skills ecosystem is not only possible through strategic planning and increased investment in training and upskilling our workforce – it is imperative.

Micro-Credentials: A Strategic Approach to Modern Education

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In the face of unprecedented changes in the workforce, education systems must evolve to provide relevant, agile, and accessible training. Micro-credentials have emerged as a key strategy in this evolution, offering a flexible and targeted approach to skill development. The collaboration between industry and post-secondary institutions in crafting these credentials ensures they meet the highest standards of quality and relevance.

The imperative for continuous upskilling is evident as technological advancements reshape the economic landscape. Vulnerable groups, including young workers, low-wage part-time employees, women, immigrants, and Indigenous youth, are particularly affected by these changes. Governments and educational bodies are increasingly adopting micro-credentials to address these needs effectively.

Countries such as Australia, New Zealand, and members of the European Union have made significant strides in incorporating micro-credentials into their education systems. Reports from organizations like the World Economic Forum, OECD, and Future Skills Council highlight the necessity for adaptive education ecosystems that can respond to the shifting demands of the workforce.

The interest of the private sector in micro-credentials further underscores their potential. Studies from RBC and the Business Council of Alberta demonstrate the economic advantages of upskilling and stress the importance of partnerships between industry, education institutions, and government. Learners today encounter numerous obstacles, including limited access to education, inflexible programs, and rising costs. Micro-credentials offer a pathway to relevant, flexible, and career-enhancing education and training.

Governments recognize the need for diverse and inclusive learning paths to support a broad spectrum of students. Micro-credentials provide opportunities for targeted skill development, enhancing the adaptability and inclusiveness of education. By integrating global best practices and adapting them to local contexts, we can effectively implement micro-credentials, ensuring they fulfill the needs of both learners and the workforce in a dynamic economic environment.