Dive Brief:

• LinkedIn has announced the launch of LinkedIn Learning Skills Insights, a new feature for LinkedIn Learning Pro that will give users access to insights on the skills employees at users' organizations hold, as well as the skills needed to bridge organizational knowledge gaps.
• In a blog post, LinkedIn Head of Product Hari Srinivasan said account administrators will be able to quantify what skills their employees hold and how their workers' skill sets grow over time. From there, administrators will be able to compare their skills base to similar companies and recommend learning paths and courses to workers, Srinivasan said.
• The feature will provide similar insights to employees using the platform, including data on which skills are growing both within and outside of their organizations. Workers will be able to view the fastest-growing skill sets globally, Srinivasan said. The feature will launch in early 2019.

Dive Insight:

The announcement of Learning Skills Insights builds on LinkedIn's Talent Insights product, which leverages the company's expansive database of job and job skills data. It may also be the latest byproduct of the company's plans to expand further into the talent management space since its recent purchase of Glint, an employee engagement software startup. At the time of the purchase in October, LinkedIn said Glint would enable to incorporate managerial feedback into LinkedIn Learning, among other talent functions.

As businesses work to upskill and train employees, resources that provide information on what employees need are mission-critical. Preparing employees and businesses for change is a priority across all industries, especially for those looking to future-proof their workforce for technological shifts and innovations.

LinkedIn's latest moves are an indication that industry's biggest players are taking the call for people analytics seriously. Moving forward, HR professionals could see a bevy of new products that track, measure and analyze performance metrics. L&D is just one of the many areas that may be affected by HR's transition to a more data-driven function.