The coronavirus pandemic has made clear the importance of learning and development (L&D). As in-person operations shut down across the country, workers turned to online courses focusing on subjects such as growth mindset and focus. And users watched more than 7.7 million hours of courses on LinkedIn Learning in April — double the amount watched in March and three times the amount watched in February.

The renewed importance of L&D initiatives was not lost on employers. A May survey from LinkedIn Learning found that 64% of global L&D professionals said that training employees to fill skill gaps had grown as a priority due to the pandemic.

As demand and need for L&D skyrocketed, the market responded. Udemy, for instance, added 700 of its courses to Talent Exchange to boost access to training resources for those impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The following stories explore how the pandemic shone a spotlight on L&D, and how employers and workers responded.