When an organization’s employee base needs new skills, the traditional answer has often been to send them away for training, conferences, workshops, or extended periods of education.
However, if your organization is already managing tight schedules, changing technology, and competing demands, taking employees out of their roles for significant periods of time can create a challenging question: who keeps up the work?
The need for new skills is becoming more urgent as technology and job requirements change. The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 found that nearly 40% of workers’ core skills are expected to change by 2030, while 63% of employers identified skills gaps as a major barrier to business transformation.
For employers looking to close skill gaps while maintaining productivity, the better question may be how learning can become part of the workday rather than something employees have to step away for.
Flexible, workforce-aligned education is one approach organizations use to make that possible.
Workforce Development for the Roles You Need
Employees need ways to build new skills as roles change. Organizations need those employees to continue contributing while they learn. Those priorities don’t have to be at odds.
Online education gives working professionals the ability to pursue degrees, certificates and professional development while remaining in the workforce.
A manager can strengthen her leadership capabilities while continuing to lead. An employee preparing for a new technical responsibility can gain the knowledge required for that role while gaining experience on the job.
Through this strategy, learning can become part of an employee's career progression instead of a pause in it.
Upskilling Without Putting Operations on Hold
One of the largest opportunities of workforce education is connecting knowledge to work employees already do.
When education aligns with organizational needs, employees can begin applying new concepts to real challenges. They can test what they learn, build confidence, identify areas where they need additional support, and bring highly relevant ideas back to their teams.
This also gives employers another way to think about skill gaps. Instead of viewing every missing skill as a reason to recruit externally, organizations can consider where employees have the potential to grow into those roles.
Internal mobility is already becoming a larger part of workforce planning. LinkedIn's 2025 Workplace Learning Report found that 55% of organizations classified as career-development champions and 48% of other respondents see internal mobility as a higher priority in the year ahead.
Flexibility As an Operational Advantage
For working professionals, flexibility often determines whether additional education is realistic in the first place.
Employees are balancing projects, meetings, deadlines, family responsibilities, and the demands of their jobs. A workforce education strategy that ignores those realities risks becoming something employees struggle to pursue instead of something they actually complete.
Time and resources are already significant barriers to career development. LinkedIn's 2025 Workplace Learning Report found that 50% of respondents identified a lack of support for managers and 45% identified a lack of support for employees among the top barriers to career development.
Flexible online programs can support employees building new skills without having to step away from their work.
LSU Online's education benefit partnerships provide employees with access to more than 150 degrees, certificates and courses, with flexible learning options designed to accommodate work, life, and family duties. Many programs are asynchronous, allowing employees to learn without being tied to a traditional classroom schedule.
Overall, LSU Online’s goal is to make the process of earning valuable skills more compatible with the responsibilities working adults already have.
From Company Perk to Talent Strategy
An education benefit can begin as a company perk, but it can also support several interconnected goals:
- Close skill gaps by helping employees develop capabilities aligned with changing roles and technologies.
- Support internal mobility by giving employees pathways to prepare for new responsibilities.
- Support retention by giving employees clearer opportunities to build their careers within the organization.
- Develop future leaders by giving emerging talent ways to build management and professional skills.
- Build workforce agility by creating a culture in which employees continually develop rather than waiting for a major organizational change to begin learning.
This is how education benefits become part of a broader talent strategy.
An employee who can see a path to develop new skills and advance within an organization may have a stronger reason to envision a future there. LinkedIn's 2025 Workplace Learning Report found that career progress is the top motivation to learn, while organizations with mature career-development practices are more confident in their ability to attract and retain talent.
The takeaway for employers is that education benefits can act as a part of a larger strategy to build the roles and skills your organization will need next.
Professional Development Is Best When Employers and Educators Work Together
For workforce learning to have lasting value, access is only one piece of the equation. Education should connect with what organizations actually need.
That means looking beyond a list of available programs and asking better questions like:
- What skills are becoming more important to our organization?
- Where are our current employees positioned to grow?
- Which roles will require new capabilities in the next several years?
- How can employees develop those skills without stepping away from their work?
- What support will employees need to successfully complete their education?
A strong education partnership can help organizations connect employees with relevant learning while also providing support throughout the enrollment and education process. LSU Online's employer partnerships include streamlined tuition assistance or reimbursement processes, employee webinars, customized company benefits pages, marketing resources, employee spotlights, and reporting.
The result is a more connected approach to workforce learning-- one that considers the employee experience as well as the organization's goals.
Modern Organizations Make Learning a Strategic Practice
Skill development doesn’t stop when an employee is hired.
The World Economic Forum expects technological change, demographic shifts, economic pressures and other forces to reshape jobs through 2030, reinforcing the need for workers and organizations to continually adapt their skills.
Organizations that make learning part of their workforce strategy are more able to respond to those changes by developing the people they already have while creating clearer pathways for where those employees can go next.
So, if you’re still asking, “should our organization offer education benefits?” you’re already behind the curve.
As employee development becomes an essential part of workforce strategy, modern organizations need to understand how to make education benefits work well for both the organization and the people who make it successful.
Build a Workforce Ready for What’s Next
LSU Online partners with employers to connect education with workforce development goals.
Powered by the LSU family of institutions, LSU Online offers access to flexible online degrees, certificates, and courses designed for working professionals. With more than 150 educational options and support for both employers and employees, LSU Online helps organizations make learning more accessible and aligned with their talent strategy.
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