Some things never change, but in the world of Learning and Development (L&D), change is the pulse that thrums at its core. While good L&D has long been understood as vital for successful organizations, the practices surrounding it have frequently shifted, often prompted by technological advancements and a greater understanding of what’s truly needed to consider an employee as ‘trained’ or ‘skilled’.
This article will examine how L&D was managed in the past, what’s needed in 2025, and how modern assessment solutions, including AI tools, in-depth reports, and skill-based learning options, are more essential than ever for L&D to succeed.
Quick Links
- A brief history of workplace L&D
- Creating L&D assessments: from paper to pixels
- Beyond your LMS
- L&D assessments and AI
- Modern assessment solutions for the new world of L&D
- The future of L&D
A brief history of workplace L&D
While systematic learning and development processes weren’t entirely new, it wasn’t until the Industrial Revolution that organized L&D became truly commonplace. With efficiency at the forefront and workers needing to be skilled and competent, standardized training initiatives became the order of the day. These programs focused on equipping the workforce with necessary skills, often giving little to no regard for personal development or differing learning styles.
Fast forward to the 21st century, and between a surge of technological advancements and a more holistic understanding of employees’ needs and organizational success, L&D has expanded beyond technical training to include other aspects such as soft skills, personal development, and tailored learning experiences. In doing so, learning and development has become more blended in its delivery, personalized, flexible, and data-driven, transforming traditional education models into the interactive and accessible learning experiences we expect today.
Creating L&D assessments: from paper to pixels
The need to measure learning success and employee understanding is a key piece of the L&D puzzle that isn’t always optimized to its full potential. For a time, there were few options beyond pen-and-paper assessments, which were frequently time-consuming, simplistic, prone to errors, and lacked the flexibility to adapt to individual learning needs. Paper grading that could take days to gather feedback from was often delayed, generic, or not given at all, and also tied learners to attending brick-and-mortar test sites. This cumbersome process impacts how quickly organizations can get a big-picture view of training effectiveness.
By contrast, the age of computerized learning has revolutionized L&D, allowing for flexible, interactive, and adaptive assessments that can be embedded in employees’ workflows and reported on in detail for a bird’s-eye view of what’s working and what’s not—quickly. This shift from manual to digital has made assessments more efficient, accurate, and engaging for learners, transforming L&D into something truly strategic.
Beyond your LMS
With computerized learning came the vital role of Learning Management Systems (LMS), which undoubtedly played an invaluable role in making L&D interactive, adaptive, and learner-focused. However, a missed opportunity often arises when future-facing organizations, recognizing the need to embrace technology, view an LMS as a one-stop-shop solution. The reality is that for L&D to truly push the needle, it needs to be data-driven, agile, and comprehensive. This is where Assessment Management Systems (AMS) come in. From detailed and in-depth reports to specific assessment formats, AMS’s can enhance and elevate LMS outcomes, keeping L&D nimble.
L&D assessments and AI
If you’ve managed to avoid the news about AIs’ arrival, you might just be the most skilled of us all. While AI isn’t as new as it seems, it’s true that the arrival of commercial LLMs that could be used by all, as with ChatGPT, has not only moved the goalposts of what’s possible in learning but might just have begun the process of one day dismantling them entirely. If the start of L&D can be defined by rigidity and one-size-fits-all methods then AI-powered L&D is the dawn of employee-first and interactive learning like we’ve never seen before. Time-saving, powerful, and still even now, in its infancy, the role of AI on assessments and L&D is the next big tidal wave of change in an industry that’s constantly moving. Are you ready?
Modern assessment solutions for the new world of L&D
As we’ve seen, L&D is an ever-evolving field. Over the years, it has transitioned through numerous phases, including the surge in tech-based learning, the focus on individual growth, and the alignment of the learning and development profession with broader business goals. Now, it is also infused with the power and persistence of AI.
So, how can organizations stay ahead of the curve in L&D while managing the hurdles that come with technological advances? As mentioned previously, Assessment Management Solutions (AMS) are an essential element in your learning ecosystem, enhancing the value of your LMS, and providing the big-picture perspectives needed to make L&D truly successful. Moreover, in a world where verifying everything we see and read is becoming increasingly difficult, assessment solutions that can accurately identify skills and surface the truth are more critical than ever.
Take a look below to see how assessments can drive value for your L&D while also helping to mitigate modern challenges.
Enhancing assessments with AI:
The new landscape of AI is an exciting one for L&D and certification. Not only has it given rise to AI tools like assessment authoring and feedback tools, but it’s also potentially paving the way for more democratic learning opportunities for all. The time-to-value aspect of AI tools is often instant, directly impacting workload and productivity challenges for L&D managers while also having huge potential to create more nuanced learning paths for test takers, surfacing what they need and giving tailored feedback and support.
Of course, with AI, as with all new technological advancements, come challenges, especially regarding cheating on workplace tests, which can be problematic at best and dangerous at worst. Tackling AI-enabled cheating, like all cheating, is a multi-faceted challenge that requires a multi-pronged approach. By making test cheating consequences well known in organizational policies, using proctoring solutions, and choosing a robust assessment platform, the risks can be mitigated.
Safeguarding tests and exams from cheating attempts isn’t only about prevention, of course, but also about choosing assessments that make cheating more difficult, especially for high-stakes skills. It’s in this that the power of skill-based assessments become more crucial than ever.
Verifying knowledge & skills with confidence
Skill-based assessment options, such as observational assessments (OJT) for high-stakes scenarios or performance-based testing for IT certifications, are exemplary for accurately measuring skills. By confronting test takers with real-world tasks rather than merely asking them to recall knowledge from memory allows organizations to gain a more holistic understanding of an employee’s true skill level. This is essential, especially for compliance-related requirements. In the new AI landscape then, where traditional assessments can be prone to misuse, the role of skill-based assessments has shifted from niche to absolutely necessary.
Providing the big picture perspectives of L&D strategy
The true value and power of assessments to L&D is that they can truly give you insight as to how competent and skilled those you’re training and testing really are. The assessment formats offered by a comprehensive AMS often outstrip what can be done using LMS options and typically give a range of assessment types for a range of industries and use cases. Whether it’s identifying skills gaps fast enough to fix it, or revealing which of your team is best to promote, assessments are the other half of training that not only tell the true story of now but also what you need to do next.
The future of L&D
The evolution of L&D from rigid to dynamic has positioned it as a powerful tool within an organization’s arsenal, keeping industry leaders ahead of the ever-changing curve. While AI is the next step in enhancing these benefits, it’s unlikely to be the last wave the industry will see. What’s more, the overall skills and demands of the workforce will likely change as a by-product of the AI boom, necessitating changes in how we manage L&D and assess skills.
However, just because the world of L&D continues to evolve doesn’t mean every organization is ready to move with it. For some, tied down by legacy tech and struggling to navigate new processes in older industries, the challenge of modernizing their L&D is daunting. For others, the assumption that L&D isn’t important beyond fundamental compliance needs leaves them missing out on untapped opportunities.
Despite these challenges, organizations across all sectors must remain vigilant when it comes to L&D, staying abreast of technology and trends to ensure they aren’t missing opportunities and can successfully weather market turbulence. Failing to do so risks losing vital ground that can be difficult to recover.
But what does that mean in real terms?
Revamping your L&D from scratch can be a hard road. Trying to implement your own custom solutions in-house or only partially upgrading your current solution can be especially difficult. The focus for organizations serious about L&D as a competitive tool should be on integrating their current L&D ecosystem with experienced and responsible AMS solutions. The benefit is that those in the AMS tech space have already done the hard work of fine-tuning solutions and can quickly bring the time-to-value benefits to the surface for their customers. Moreover, the leaders in this area are heavily invested in staying technologically ahead, carving out their place in the new world of L&D, and in doing so, carrying you with them.
If you’re interested in boosting your L&D or wondering if your solution could benefit from more advanced assessment technology, then talk to us. We’d love to hear your pain points and see how we can help.