If you ask me what I’m going to have for supper I couldn’t tell you.

I can’t see that far into the future, I’m not a fortune teller, and planning ahead is not my forte.

But that won’t stop me from going out on a limb here and making some bold predictions about the future of training.

(Here’s one I’m going to throw in for free. I predict that these are all going to come true and if you don’t pay heed now you will regret it later.)

Let’s get started.

  • Instructor-led training will experience a resurgence, as people crave more face-to-face interaction. The virtual, electronic world is obviously here to stay, but there is something to be said for talking to a person IRL* than looking at a pixel.
  • Training technology will expand far beyond what we’ve seen today. Virtual reality will really make a splash in the training world – it’s already been used to help PTSD sufferers. Can holograms in training be far behind?
  • Training will become more, not less, important. As individuals become more engrossed in specializations and less involved in general concepts, they will need training to shore up their weak areas or areas where they need certification.
  • Self-paced and online education will be recognized by big business as having the same weight and value as a traditional university degree or college diploma, without the crushing debt load.
  • A new trend in massive, public training sessions will begin and spread into a new craze. These will be totally different and more in line with a ‘flash mob’ type of training. Picture a street corner preacher up on his soap box, but instead of telling us to “repent the end is near” he’s giving us tips on time management or dealing with gender diversity in the workplace.

Remember you heard these predictions about the future of training here first.

Agree? Don’t agree?

Tell us what you think.

* In Real Life