For years, compliance ruled as a top corporate training priority.

Not anymore.

For the first time, upskilling and reskilling are ascendant, according to Fosway Group.

But even with that momentum, there remains a lot of head scratching happening among learning and business leaders over how to make skills work.

What does it mean for organizations trying to build agile, skills-first learning strategies?

“That’s still an ongoing conversation,” says Fiona Leteney, Senior Analyst at Fosway Group.

In the final episode of our three-part podcast series, Leteney and Degreed Co-CEO Max Wessel unpack the shift, explore the 2025 Fosway 9-Grid for Learning Systems research, and discuss how buyers can thoughtfully work with learning tech vendors.

Where Skills Strategy Breaks Down

While enthusiasm for skills is growing, execution remains complex. Organizations are grappling with granularity—”Are we managing 50 skills or 50,000?”—along with data exchange challenges and systems that don’t talk to each other.

Too often, talent and learning data are still siloed—leaving teams without a clear view of employee capabilities or opportunities to reskill for open roles. Forward-thinking business leaders understand that systems need to integrate and scale with minimal friction and quickly deliver measurable outcomes.

Leteney frames it like this: “Interoperability and the integration of systems within an ecosystem is one of the most important things. ”

Interoperability vs. Consolidation

In some cases, employees have to log into three separate platforms just to access one course. That’s inefficient and unsustainable.

The pressure to consolidate tech stacks and cut costs is real. But when decisions are made without input from learning teams, critical capabilities can get lost.

Advice for Learning Leaders

When asked how organizations can rise to the skills challenge, Leteney is clear: “Partner with your vendors… We saw in all the research, often it’s the partnerships where the value is, so that you can be part of the conversation as a buyer, you can influence the roadmap and you can influence the direction of travel—and also give the reality checks to the vendors.

“The devil’s always in the details, and every organization’s different, and it’s finding those vendors that you can actually have that conversation with.”

That kind of collaboration is exactly what Degreed was designed to support.

We power connected ecosystems that make skill development work—from granular data insights to automated and AI-enhanced experiences that adapt in real time.

Whether you’re launching a new strategy or rethinking your entire learning tech stack, Degreed can help you make it seamless—and scalable.

Let’s talk about how Degreed can help you future-proof your learning ecosystem.

The post New Podcast: Is Your Learning Tech Ready for the Skills Era? appeared first on Degreed.

Recent research suggests adoption might not be as deep as the marketing suggests.

“We ended up doing a bit of digging to find out why that was the case,” says Fiona Leteney, Senior Analyst at Fosway Group.

This perspective comes as Leteney reunites with Degreed Co-CEO Max Wessel in a podcast conversation on The AI Dilemma in Learning Systems, exploring the 2025 Fosway 9-Grid for Learning Systems research.

In this second episode of our three-part series—catch up on episode No. 1 here—Leteney and Wessel explore the gap between bold AI hype promises and current delivery, what’s holding companies back from more significant AI adoption, and what forward-thinking learning and business leaders can keep in mind as they shop vendors.

AI Hype vs. AI Help

Leteney spent more than 18 months interviewing vendors and corporate buyers for the Fosway research. While vendors touted AI on roadmaps and in demos, buyers were skeptical. Corporate users in the Fosway network consistently reported underwhelming functionality and lagging adoption.

Why? The hesitation comes from:

• Internal politics
• Security concerns
• Governance barriers
• The unknowns of ROI

In some cases, IT teams are pushing back. In others, people are simply waiting to see who makes the first move.

Where AI is Working

Some promising uses of AI? The ones you almost don’t notice. Like intelligent assistants in authoring tools or agentic features that automate complex reports with a simple prompt.

That “quiet AI” has massive potential—especially in areas learning systems have historically struggled with, like personalization and reporting. If the system can simply do the thing without users realizing it’s AI, adoption will follow.

Leteney calls out analytics use cases as particularly impactful: If AI can answer, for example, “How compliant is this region?” and generate a report—without an admin needing to run significant queries—that’s potentially indispensable.

AI Hype Advice for Learning Leaders

For those wondering how to navigate the AI maze, Leteney offers this: “Go looking…  Learn as much as you can, because this is coming almost as a tsunami, and making the best of this is going to improve your role in your company. And if you don’t, then that’s going to be holding you back. So I think, absolutely, embrace this massively.”

And remember, AI doesn’t have to be flashy to be powerful.

What matters most now is value—not novelty.

Degreed is built for this moment. We believe AI should be embedded in workflows, not layered on top. That’s why we’re building features that deliver real impact, quietly and powerfully—from AI-assisted content curation and skills analysis to personalized learning journeys and automated nudges.

Find out more.

Cut through the AI hype. Let Degreed help you scale what works, with real impact.

The post New Podcast: Is the AI Hype in Learning Tech Justified? appeared first on Degreed.

Now, with budgets tightening and expectations rising, a new question looms: Are those investments really delivering?

“Everybody needed to get a learning system,” says Fiona Leteney, Senior Analyst at Fosway Group. “But the sugar rush is over.”

This insight comes as Leteney joins Degreed Co-CEO Max Wessel in a podcast conversation on The State of Learning Systems in 2025, exploring the 2025 Fosway 9-Grid for Learning Systems research. Their discussion homes in on three things impacting the learning systems market today: The economic climate, artificial intelligence, and skills.

From Urgency to Accountability

Some learning teams bought a solution during the Covid pandemic out of short-term urgency, and perhaps didn’t fully understand the job they were acquiring it to do. “Do you think there’s more maturity now… in terms of that thoughtfulness?” Max asks Leteney.

Leteney’s answer reveals a split landscape:

At Smaller Organizations

Many purchases were made quickly, with minimal due diligence. “You only really get to know a system when you are using it,” she says, highlighting that many teams are now realizing limitations and reassessing.

At Larger Enterprises

The challenge is different. Many already had systems in place, but are now questioning if those systems are truly being used to full advantage—especially in new contexts like global programmatic delivery. For them, upcoming renewal decisions are about maximizing ROI and ensuring tech stacks support evolving business needs.

As renewal discussions surface, CFOs and CIOs are asking hard questions about value. Learning leaders are expected to demonstrate ROI, not just activity. And the bar for impact is high.

Recalibrating for What’s Next

Making change isn’t about regret. It’s about realignment. What worked in a crisis may not work in today’s complex, budget-conscious, and outcome-driven environment.

Degreed is built for this moment.

Degreed empowers you to:

• Pinpoint skills your people need now
• Personalize development at scale using AI and automations
• Integrate with your existing tech stack
• Measure and communicate impact across the business

You’re not stuck with decisions made in urgency. You have the opportunity to evolve your strategy—and your stack—to deliver real value.

Find out more.

Let’s talk about how Degreed can help you scale learning for impact. Schedule a demo today.

The post New Podcast: Is Your Learning Tech Still Worth It? appeared first on Degreed.