A new TalentLMS benchmark report spotlighting the state of workplace learning in 2026 finds that training has become a decisive lever for employee retention. Yet organizations are struggling to carve out time for learning amid rising workloads and the rise of AI in the workplace.
The 2026 Annual L&D Benchmark Report, a survey of 101 U.S.-based HR managers and 1,000 employees, reveals that companies are expanding their learning programs and expectations. But as employers raise the bar on performance, employees report that the time and mental space for learning is shrinking.
Overall, the data shows high-water marks for employee satisfaction with company learning: 84% say they are satisfied, up compared with 79% and 75% in previous reports by TalentLMS.
Companies also seem to be prioritizing learning. This year, 76% of HR managers are satisfied with L&D funding, up from 61% three years ago.
The report also highlights a renewed risk of turnover, which is directly tied to development opportunities. Nearly three-quarters of employees (73%) say access to training would make them stay longer, aligning with HR leaders’ own expectations: 95% agree that better training improves retention.
The research also compared data from two previous TalentLMS L&D reports. The risk of employees leaving is on the rise again. After declining from 41% to 24% in 2024, the share of employees who say they would look for another job without training rebounded to 35% in 2025. That’s a signal that learning is re-emerging as a baseline employee demand, not a perk.
“The data sends a clear signal that employees want employers to invest in learning and development,” said Dimitris Tsingos, CEO of Epignosis, parent company of TalentLMS. “That requires top-down strategies and learning that empowers everyone — from the receptionist to the CEO — to help people grow, and build AI competencies that keep companies and talent ahead of innovation.”
Time remains a barrier
If retention is the “why,” time is still the “how” problem. For the third straight year, employees cite lack of time as the top obstacle to training. Over half of employees (53%) say workloads leave little room for development, even when training is needed; HR leaders report a similar constraint, with 50% pointing to workload-driven time shortages as the biggest barrier to L&D success.
Those pressures are intensifying, with 65% of employees saying performance expectations increased in the past year, and 45% feel pushed to deliver more at work. This squeeze is contributing to a growing “multitasking during training” trend, which reached 70% in 2025 — a sign that even when learners show up, attention is divided.
AI reshapes learning priorities — and creates tension
The most significant shift in this year’s findings is related to the rise of AI and the need for learning strategies to keep pace. HR leaders expect Generative AI to reshape knowledge access (88%), redefine roles (81%), and transform talent management (84%). Most are acting quickly: 70% plan to create new AI-related roles within a year, and only 6% say their companies do not yet offer AI training.
But the report also highlights unease about what AI training is meant to achieve. Nearly half of HR managers (47%) say their AI training is designed to make jobs easier to automate. That dual signal — AI as opportunity and AI as displacement — may explain why TalentLMS finds an emerging perception gap between leaders and employees around AI learning support, with employees trailing HR optimism by about 19 percentage points.
Three macro trends for 2026
To help L&D teams interpret the data, the report frames three broader trends shaping the next era of learning: “learning debt” caused by missed development time, “work as a fast-lane learning engine” when organizations protect practice and feedback loops, and the rise of AI-enabled co-learning systems, where people and intelligent tools learn, adapt, and improve together.
For learning leaders, the message is clear. Training is increasingly tied to retention and readiness, and employees recognize its value. But unless organizations create real capacity for learning — through protected time, hands-on practice and transparent AI upskilling — even well-designed programs risk becoming another item in an overfull workday.
The full report is available here.
Anthony Spangler.
