Dive Brief:

• Jacob Morgan, author of The Future of Work: Attract New Talent, Build Better Leaders, and Create a Competitive Organization, contributes to Forbes and predicts that with the inclusion of greater learning technologies in the workplace, the advantages of arriving in a company with a broad range of knowledge will become a thing of the past. Being an adaptable and effective learner will become a priority.

• Morgan calls this the “age of the learning workers,” adding that the real difference isn’t that candidates are smarter, but that the way we find and learn information has drastically improved with mobile technology at our fingertips. He says what will set this new breed of workers apart, “is their knowledge of how to learn. Instead of having a set of specific skills, learning workers have the skills to learn as they go, adapt, and apply their learning to new situations and issues.”

• Learning workforces also signal the arrival of entire learning organizations, which will enable them to excel in any given market. 

Dive Insight:

It’s no secret that e-learning technology is transforming the workforce in many ways. It’s enabling employees to gain more control over their professional development because learning is available everywhere and any time. 

A learning workforce is strong because it’s flexible and proactive. Morgan says that, “These organizations are led by learning workers who adapt and evolve as the industry changes. Instead of having a stiff business plan and set of processes, learning organizations value collaboration and innovation.” Learning organizations will lead the way in any economic climate.

It can be challenging to switch from being a knowledge worker, based on older ideas of passing information down from one expert to others, but learning workers can take the bull by the horns and develop a love for learning now. Younger generations tend to bring this value with them.