One of my favorite parts of working in the broader education and training industry is connecting with other impact-focused leaders. There’s a genuine willingness to share ideas, collaborate on solutions, and ultimately drive improved outcomes. Because at the core, most leaders are working at companies like Holmes Corporation (HC) that are focused on the double bottom line, where there is strong alignment between great business models and great outcomes that impact individuals and communities.
It feels like this industry is in a constant state of flux due to rapid technological change, combined with ever-evolving job roles and accelerated demand for new skills, and the tendency to continually shift to new models and solutions to try to achieve broader impact. In this environment, professional education and certifications are undergoing significant transformations, moving from static one-time achievements followed by continuing education for certification maintenance to a model of continuous, lifelong learning and stackable credentials.
As we head into 2026, I wanted to share my general perspectives on trends in education and training.
- Education is an Ecosystem that Should be Leveraged Cooperatively
No single organization can or should tackle this alone. EdTech companies like HC bring scale and capabilities to reach the market in new ways, but a cooperative ecosystem drives the best results. By partnering with Associations and extending those relationships across colleges, universities, and corporate partners, we create collaborative models where each partner contributes unique strengths.
Associations bring subject matter authority and member trust. Higher education institutions provide academic rigor and credentialing infrastructure. Corporate partners offer real-world application and workforce validation. EdTech providers deliver the technology backbone, scalable delivery platforms, and data insights that tie it all together. The organizations that will win in 2026 are those that recognize they don’t need to build everything themselves. They need to build the right partnerships that create value for learners across their entire career journey. This interconnected approach not only reduces redundancy and cost but also ensures learners can access the right training, at the right time, through pathways that actually make sense for their goals.
- AI’s Transformation of Learning and Credentialing
We can’t go past #2 without mentioning AI and its impact on education and training. Artificial Intelligence is making learning more engaging, adaptive, and personalized. What does that mean at a practical level and how can we apply this to the future of certification, credentialing, and workforce engagement?
- Personalized learning paths: AI and data analytics are being used to tailor educational content, pace, and feedback to the individual learner’s unique needs, preferences, and existing skill sets.
- Immersive learning: Technologies like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality are creating highly engaging, practical training simulations, particularly for complex or high-risk professional fields. AI solutions will be able to create situational assessments and personalized immersive learning at a rapid and more cost-effective pace.
- Hybrid models: The acceleration of digital tools has cemented blended and hybrid learning, combining the flexibility of online delivery with the engagement of in-person or synchronous virtual instruction.
- Content development: The advancements in AI content development are happening at a rapid pace. I firmly believe in human engagement and a human element to authoritative content, but AI can help accelerate that development.
- Convergence of education and learning: AI-enabled knowledge and content architecture is going to be the backbone. Not everyone is geared towards broader certification or credentials, nor may they want to pursue more bespoke microcredentials or non-credentialed continual learning. But that authoritative content and content infrastructure can be the backbone to provide continuous learning to the workforce or students, reaching and transferring skills and knowledge to new segments.
- The Rise of Stackable Credentials and Microcredentials
Traditional degrees are no longer the sole currency or gateway to employment and career development. Let’s face it…the four-year college won the marketing war, with an education system fundamentally designed to push people through to post-secondary. The result is a system that works for ~25% of the population. Just over 60% of high school grads enroll in college or other post-secondary institutions within one year of graduating high school; of that, only 61% graduate within six years, and it’s estimated that over 40% of college grads are underemployed! This has contributed to over $1.8 trillion in student loan debt and societal and structural issues downstream that we must grapple with as a country. But this doesn’t have to be the model. 52% of people are employed in jobs that do not require a college degree, and if we rethink access to the labor market based on identified and assessed skills, this figure would likely increase significantly. It’s a broader education-to-employment system that requires change. The good news is there is a growing focus on specific, verifiable skills, leading to the explosion of microcredentials, industry certifications, and digital badges. According to HolonIQ, these alternative credentials are projected to become a $300 billion global market by 2030, a 20% compound annual growth rate. This includes:
- Microlearning: Education is broken down into small, bite-sized modules focused on a single concept, making learning feasible for busy professionals and enabling “just-in-time” skill acquisition.
- Stackable Credentials: Learners can build a formal career pathway by earning a series of smaller certifications that accumulate toward a larger, more advanced qualification. This offers flexible, step-by-step career progression.
- Funding Models are Changing
We’re seeing meaningful shifts in how education gets funded, and these changes matter for how we think about serving learners. In the U.S., 529 plans, traditionally reserved for four-year degrees, are increasingly covering alternative credentials and shorter-term programs. WIOA (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act) funding continues to expand access to skills-based training, particularly for displaced workers and those looking to reskill. Short-term Pell grants are pushing more federal dollars toward programs under 15 weeks, creating new pathways for non-traditional learners.
The staggering $1.8 trillion in outstanding student loan debt is driving both policymakers and students to seek more affordable, ROI-focused education options. The funding infrastructure is finally catching up to what we’ve known for years: career pathways don’t follow a one-size-fits-all model, and the money should flow to programs that deliver measurable outcomes, whether that’s a four-year degree, a certification, or a targeted microcredential.
- Lifelong Learning and the Skills-Based Economy
The skills gap is widening as technology advances faster than the workforce can keep up and without underlying scaled structural changes in the education to employment ecosystem. This has mandated a culture of lifelong learning, upskilling, and reskilling.
- Upskilling enhances existing skills to meet new industry demands (e.g., a marketing manager learning AI-powered customer segmentation).
- Reskilling involves learning entirely new skills to transition into different roles (e.g., an accountant learning programming to become a data scientist).
- Employers increasingly prioritize a candidate’s verified skills and competencies over their traditional academic degrees, fostering a true skills-based economy.
These five trends are shaping an education and training landscape that is more flexible, more skills-focused, and more aligned with the realities of today’s rapidly evolving workforce. The organizations that understand and adapt to these trends will be the ones that drive meaningful impact in 2026 and beyond. In my November article, I’ll explore how professional associations like HC’s partners are uniquely positioned to serve as vital architects and critical partners in this new educational ecosystem.
