The world of work globally has been characterised by rapid changes involving technological disruption, automation, and an evolving market, causing a widening skills gap among employees.
Many organisations are struggling to keep pace, as the traditional workforce often lacks the technical, digital, and soft skills required to meet new operational demands. This has led to increasing pressure on businesses to adapt quickly, while ensuring that employees remain productive, engaged, and capable of navigating an increasingly complex environment.
Organisations must therefore recognise the pivotal role that leadership and development (L&D) professionals play in the workplace. By embedding continuous learning into organisational culture, these practitioners can design targeted reskilling and upskilling programmes that address current and future skills gaps. In doing so, L&D professionals not only safeguard business survival but also strengthen long-term performance, positioning organisations to remain competitive in a fast-changing global market.
That was the central theme of the Organisational Learning and Development Conference held in Lagos, which brought together HR professionals and industry experts to explore how L&D practitioners can be positioned as strategic partners within the business architecture.
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Embedding continuous learning into workplace culture
Ademola Johnson, convener of the conference, emphasised that effective L&D functions allow organisations to align corporate objectives with national and individual goals, while simultaneously improving employee satisfaction and overall profitability. He argued that addressing skills mismatches particularly in technical, digital, and soft skills is essential to ensure employees can access quality roles and organisations can meet their productivity targets.
He stressed, “When the people managing learning and development functions within their organisations are good, they are able to support the organisation to achieve its goals. From organisational goals, you go into country goals and even individual goals. When these people are supporting everyone very well, everyone is happy, companies are happy, and there is profitability at the end of the day.”
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Embracing learning agility
The conference further highlighted the need for learning agility, with experts warning that traditional approaches to training are no longer sufficient in a rapidly evolving global environment.
Kemi Shonubi, director of People, Culture, Experience and Operations at TVC, explained, “We talk about learning, unlearning and relearning, but we are not deliberate enough about embracing learning agility. It must be done fast because the world we are in is moving so quickly. You need to know what skill set or competency is lacking so that when you deploy your intervention, you are hitting the right notes and people leave feeling fulfilled.”
She reiterated that identifying skills gaps is critical to making learning interventions meaningful. “You need to know what skills or competencies are lacking so that when you deploy your interventions, you are hitting the right notes and people leave feeling fulfilled”, she said.
Similarly, Shehu Zubairu, Associate Partner at Human Capital Partners, highlighted the importance of targeted interventions, “When we conduct a skills audit, it tells us exactly what our skill strengths are. From there, we can develop a clear developmental plan that helps us administer the acquisition of these skills over a particular period.
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Ensuring inclusive learning
Beyond technology, speakers highlighted the importance of inclusive management practicularly, ensuring development opportunities for employees with special needs.
Dolapo Agbede, expert on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, urged organisations to adapt learning methods to suit all employees. “If I come to you and say I am blind, you should believe me and adapt my learning methods to suit me. Is your content screen-reader adaptable? Are there audio options so I can participate fully like others?”, she said.
Ultimately, experts concluded that with the right investment in people and performance, Nigerian organisations could better position themselves for resilience and sustainability in an increasingly unpredictable business climate.
