Imagine two team members faced with a sudden shift in their company’s strategy. One freezes, overwhelmed by new information, while the other dives in asking questions, learning new concepts on the fly, and quickly charting a path forward. The difference in their responses comes down to learning agility, the capability to rapidly learn from experience and apply that learning in new, unfamiliar situations. In an era of constant disruption, learning agility is the “secret sauce” that helps employees and organizations pivot quickly and thrive.

Learning agility is the ability to rapidly learn from experiences and then apply those lessons in first-time or challenging situations. It’s more than just learning quickly; it’s about being adaptable in the face of the unknown. This trait is increasingly valued among HR leaders, learning architects, and instructional designers who strive to build a future-ready workforce.

Why Learning Agility Matters for a Future-Ready Workforce

The urgency for learning agility in organizations has never been greater. In a world of continuous change, nearly half of learning and development professionals agree that their executives worry employees lack the skills needed to execute the business strategy (49% of respondents). Similarly, new research from ATD found that 3 out of 4 talent development professionals anticipate future skills gaps in their organizations. These findings underline a widespread concern: as technology and market dynamics evolve, employees must keep up or companies risk falling behind.

Yet, closing skill gaps is proving to be a monumental challenge. A recent Gartner survey revealed that 31% of organizations can’t create skill development solutions fast enough to meet evolving needs, leading many to “rent” talent (e.g. contractors) to fill gaps instead of developing internal staff. Even top executives acknowledge the stakes. In one EY survey of the energy sector, 91% of executives said their ability to reskill employees will determine their success over the next five years – but only about 26% are actually retraining employees today. This gap between knowing and doing highlights why learning agility has become a critical focus: companies need people who are continuous learners, ready to adapt as new priorities emerge.

The impact of learning agility (or lack thereof) on organizational performance is evident in real-world examples. Consider Netflix: originally a DVD-by-mail service, Netflix continually learned and evolved its business model—embracing streaming video and later producing original content—to stay ahead of industry disruption. That agility to learn and pivot quickly has kept Netflix at the forefront of entertainment. By contrast, Kodak (once a market leader in photography) failed to adapt to the digital revolution. Its competitor Fujifilm, however, exhibited learning agility by expanding into new markets like healthcare and cosmetics using its core chemical expertise, and as a result Fujifilm thrived while Kodak filed for bankruptcy. The lesson is clear: organizations built on learning agility are far more “future-ready” and resilient amid change.

The Five Dimensions of Learning Agility

Research by Michael Lombardo and Robert Eichinger (later popularized by Korn Ferry’s learning agility model) shows that learning agility isn’t a single skill – it’s a combination of five key dimensions. Understanding these dimensions can help HR and learning professionals identify and develop agility in their teams:

1. Mental Agility: Thinking critically to penetrate complex problems and making fresh connections between ideas. Mentally agile individuals are curious, comfortable with ambiguity, and eager to learn new things. They tackle problems from different angles and learn quickly in unfamiliar situations.

2. People Agility: Understanding and relating to a wide variety of people, and harnessing interpersonal skills to unlock collective performance. People-agile employees are emotionally intelligent, able to collaborate across diverse teams, and open to feedback. They learn from others and can lead through influence – a crucial skill during organizational change.

3. Change Agility: Enjoying experimentation, being curious, and handling the discomfort of change effectively. Those high in change agility are not only unafraid of change – they embrace it. They proactively seek new challenges, innovate, and bounce back quickly from setbacks, viewing each change as a learning opportunity rather than a threat.

4. Results Agility: Delivering results in first-time or tough situations by inspiring others and confidently tackling new challenges. Results-agile people have a performance mindset – they figure out how to succeed even when they haven’t done something before. They’re resourceful, lead teams to solutions, and learn from any mistakes to win next time.

5. Self-Awareness: Being reflective and knowing oneself well – understanding one’s own strengths, weaknesses, and blind spots, and the impact one has on others. This dimension underpins all the others. Highly self-aware individuals actively seek feedback and learn from it. They recognize what they need to improve and adapt their approach accordingly, which makes continuous learning possible.

These five facets work together as the building blocks of learning agility. For example, an employee with mental agility and people agility might quickly learn a new software (mental agility) by reaching out to colleagues for insights (people agility). If they’re also change-agile, they’ll probably volunteer for the pilot of that software (embracing the change) and aim to deliver strong results in using it (results agility), all while reflecting on what they could do better next time (self-awareness). By cultivating all five dimensions, organizations reinforce a culture where learning from experience is constant, preparing the whole team to tackle whatever comes next.

Assessing and Developing Learning Agility in the Workplace

Knowing the elements of learning agility is one thing; actively developing them in your workforce is the real challenge. The good news is that learning agility can be assessed and developed through intentional workplace practices. Here are some strategies for HR leaders and learning professionals:

• Assess for agility using tools and interviews: Start by evaluating current levels of learning agility. You can use formal assessments – for example, Korn Ferry offers a Learning Agility assessment – to identify high-potential agile learners. Additionally, incorporate learning agility indicators into hiring or promotion decisions. During interviews, ask open-ended questions like how a candidate handled sudden change or integrated feedback on the job. Their answers will reveal adaptability, problem-solving, and willingness to learn (or lack thereof).

• Encourage a culture of learning from mistakes: Employees need psychological safety to try new things and occasionally fail forward. Reinforce the message that mistakes are natural and are opportunities to learn, rather than punishable offenses. When team members know that experiments and even failures are supported, they’ll be more inclined to stretch themselves and pick up lessons along the way. Managers can model this by sharing what they’ve learned from setbacks.

• Provide stretch assignments and job rotations: One of the best ways to build learning agility is through experience. Rotate employees into new roles or projects that push them beyond their comfort zones (with proper support). These stretch assignments force people to develop new skills and adapt to unfamiliar challenges, accelerating their learning agility. For example, a high-potential employee in marketing might spend a few months embedded in the sales team – both to learn and to gain a broader perspective.

• Promote collaboration and knowledge sharing: Learning doesn’t happen in isolation. Create structures for people to learn from each other – mentorship programs, cross-functional team projects, or communities of practice. Even setting up an internal social platform or regular “lunch and learn” sessions can encourage employees to share knowledge and solve problems together. This not only spreads best practices quickly but also improves people agility (as employees learn to work with diverse perspectives).

• Run skill gap analyses and personalized development plans: Leverage your L&D team to identify where employees need growth. A skills gap analysis can pinpoint which emerging skills or competencies are lacking. With that insight, design development plans that might include targeted training, coaching, or stretch goals to build those skills. Make development continuous and employee-driven – for instance, give staff time and resources for self-directed learning, whether through online courses or new project assignments.

• Reward curiosity and initiative: To develop change agility, explicitly recognize and reward employees who show curiosity, take initiative to learn new things, and adapt well when circumstances change. When promotions and praise go to those who exemplify learning agility (not just static performance), it signals to everyone that adaptability is a core value. This encourages others to follow suit and be more proactive in their growth.

By embedding these practices, organizations create a reinforcing loop: employees get better at learning new skills, which makes the company more agile and successful, which in turn motivates even more learning. Over time, you build not just individuals but a learning-agile culture – one where continuous learning, feedback, and adaptation are part of the DNA of the team.

Next Steps for Building a Learning-Agile Team

For HR and L&D leaders aiming to cultivate a future-ready, learning-agile team, leveraging the right tools can make all the difference. One practical next step is to explore platforms that streamline adaptive learning and training development. For example, Mindsmith is an AI-powered eLearning authoring tool that can help your team rapidly create engaging, customized learning content. Using generative AI, Mindsmith allows even small learning teams to develop interactive lessons and micro-courses in a fraction of the time it used to take – which means you can respond faster to emerging training needs. By harnessing tools like this (Mindsmith offers a free trial to get started), you empower your organization to scale up learning agility development quickly.

Investing in your team’s learning agility today is a strategic move to ensure you have a future-ready workforce tomorrow. When your people can learn, adapt, and innovate continuously, your organization can confidently navigate whatever changes come next – and even turn disruption into opportunity. Embrace learning agility as a core competency, and watch your team thrive in the face of the unknown.

Ready to future-proof your team? Start your free trial or schedule a demo with Mindsmith and see how AI-assisted content creation can help your team adapt faster and perform better.