New report urges India Inc. to rethink skilling strategies as participation gaps, generational divides, and ROI concerns widen
upGrad Enterprise – the corporate skilling division of Asia’s leading integrated lifelong learning company, upGrad has launched a groundbreaking industry report titled ‘Skilling Smarter: A Strategic Guide to Training Across Generations’.
Based on insights from 12,300+ professionals across sectors, the report exposes the growing disconnect between employee needs and existing corporate training frameworks — driven by the evolving expectations of a multigenerational workforce.
Despite widespread recognition of upskilling as a business imperative, the report reveals that 50% of India’s workforce remained untrained in FY24-25, while 75% of employees engaged in learning only when mandated. Nearly 1 in 2 Indian workplaces still lack formal skilling strategies, resulting in inconsistent access and widening capability gaps. The findings highlight a lack of personalisation, access, and relevance in training models across generational cohorts, be it the pragmatic Gen X, the independent Gen Y, or the digital-first Gen Z.
Key findings include:
- 1 in 4 workplaces lack formal strategies: 50% of professionals receive no training in FY24–25; only 16% engaged in quarterly learning
- Mandates outweigh motivation: 75% train only when required; top barriers include irrelevance (51%), limited access (43%), and lack of time (42%)
- Mismatch in priorities: Organisations invest in technical and industry-focused skilling, while employees seek leadership, soft skills, and strategic thinking
- One workforce, many learners: Gen X values expert-led formats, Gen Y prefers structured flexibility, and Gen Z wants immersive, on-demand learning — yet 63% of HR leaders do not tailor programs by generation
- Skilling design vs learner preference: While 80% of GenZ train under managers, nearly 50% prefer self-paced or third-party learning formats
- Low investment, low ROI: 60% of HR Leaders allocate under 5% of HR budgets to skilling; 61.5% of CHROs report no measurable impact
- Format fatigue: 50% of GenZ equate skilling with preset digital modules, but 45% want interactive, real-world learning
“There’s a serious skilling gap emerging; we see companies budgeting annually but there’s very little to no skilling provided to employees. Let’s not forget that the pace of technology is outstripping organisational readiness, and we are not ready for the ripples it's going to create very soon. With this report, we want to go out with a strong message that in a multigenerational workplace, skilling — AI-focused and embedded with soft skills — must adapt to the learner’s needs, and not the other way around,” said Srikanth Iyengar, CEO, upGrad Enterprise. “Without personalized, real-time, and career-aligned learning, training becomes a checkbox activity – ineffective at best, costly at worst. This is where, our decade-long experience has been enabling us to design industry-relevant pedagogy and content – rooted in deep learner intelligence. We leverage workforce data effectively to craft adaptive learning journeys that align individual career aspirations with organisational goals, and ensure skills are not just acquired, but applied meaningfully for business impact.”
“Our goal with this report was to spark action, not just conversation, by grounding our insights in unassailable data and living our belief that 'data or it didn't happen.' What sets 'Skilling Smarter' apart is its dissection of the multifaceted challenges of a multigenerational workforce, built upon insights from over 12,300 professionals. This was a deliberate effort to ensure diverse representation and bring serious numbers to bear on serious issues. This rigorous foundation allows us to provide concrete, actionable frameworks for India Inc. As a leader in lifelong learning, upGrad understands the imperative of tailoring education to the learner. This report is our contribution to helping CHROs, L&D heads, and CXOs unlock the full potential of their talent investments by fostering a culture of relevant, outcome-linked, and truly impactful learning” added Shirin Rai Gupta, Director – Marketing, upGrad Enterprise.
The report serves as a strategic guide for CHROs, L&D heads, and CXOs, offering practical frameworks to future-proof their talent investments. It advocates for deeper personalisation, cross-generational thinking, and outcome-linked learning.