Amidst an uncertain economic climate, more companies in South-east Asia (SEA), including in the Philippines, are investing in learning and development (L&D) to stay agile and ensure their workforce is ready to optimize opportunities. Investment in L&D is an increasing national focus in the Philippines, as the new GoDigital Pilipinas initiative aims to promote the development of digital literacy, including entrepreneurship and innovation, in the country. Opportunities for continuous learning have also become table stakes for professionals in response to constant change from tech disruption and a volatile job market. 

This growing culture of learning is reflected in the evolving role of L&D departments within companies, as C-Suite is tapping more to help boost growth by building people-centric cultures and deploying skilling programs. 

Data from the report on SEA reveals: 

• L&D’s role in helping businesses thrive amid macroeconomic uncertainty is evolving to be more critical and multi-faceted
  • Upskilling and reskilling into growing areas of the economy to capture opportunities
    • 9 in 10 L&D professionals in this region agree that proactively building employee skills for today and tomorrow will help navigate the evolving future of work. 
    • Over 1 in 2 (53%) L&D leaders across the Philippines, Malaysia, and Singapore expect to have more spending power in 2023 

• Skills-building to create a culture of talent development and internal mobility to boost employee retention 
  • Companies also recognize that skill-building has a positive impact on employee retention. An overwhelming majority (94%) of organizations in SEA are concerned about employee retention, and 6 in 10 are providing learning opportunities to improve employee retention.
  • Over 8 in 10 (82%) agree it is less expensive to reskill a current employee than to hire a new one

• Priorities of L&D leaders in the new year
  • The top programs L&D leaders across SEA are planning for in 2023 are in mentorship, large-scale upskilling, employee well-being and digital fluency or transformation
  • There is an opportunity for quicker acceleration on L&D – Close to 3 in 10 (29%) of L&D leaders are in the early stage of proposing the idea of large-scale upskilling and reskilling initiatives in their organization and assembling a team to do so, as compared to 16% in 2022. 

To remain agile and resilient in the fast-evolving business environment, companies are prioritizing soft skills to help their workforce navigate complex work situations, build relationships, and achieve results. LinkedIn data on the 2023 Most In-Demand Skills in the Philippines, based on paid job postings as well as standout skills of professionals who received a recruiter’s InMail or were hired in the past six months, shows that companies in the country value talent who have a customer service orientation the most.  Other skills to handle diverse people and situations are highly sought-after as well. Hard skills such as research and marketing round up the list of skills that can help professionals stand out and for businesses to navigate and thrive in this environment. 

To help fuel the career growth of professionals, the following LinkedIn Learning courses will be offered for free until 15 March 2023 to learn the most in-demand skills in the Philippines: