The State of Skills 2025

“Early investment helps young leaders develop strong people skills and a clear leadership style. It makes sure leadership is not only about technical skills but also about inspiring and guiding others.”

Anouk Sanders

Team lead of Learning & Development

“To truly embed learning into organizational culture, leaders need to share their own learning journeys openly. Some call this ‘public learning.’ When learning remains a private exchange between a trainer and participant, it often fosters a sense of shame—a barrier to growth.”

Dr. Makoto Makabe

Director of Corporate Learning & Development

"Sales success can be planned, and it requires the application of a promising methodology. At Fagus GreCon, we’ve embraced the Value Selling methodology, which emphasizes understanding customer needs and tailoring solutions to address them in a more targeted and attractive way."

Dr. Uli Hilbers

Head of Sales and Market Development

“To keep up with future workplace changes, training in Analytical Thinking should evolve towards promoting a hybrid mindset — where humans collaborate effectively with AI to drive business decisions.”

Simon Brown

Training Project Manager

“We're constantly looking at where the business is going, and what we need to do strategically to support the business. That's why we so often have a slightly different approach from one year to the next in what we put in place for soft skills training.”

Johandri Kieck

Global Learning and Development Manager

“Managers are no longer just team leaders—they are also change agents, mentors, and advocates for their team’s wellbeing, each of which requires a different skill set.”

Annee Spijkervet

VP Commercial

“The future holds unknown challenges, like sustainability or DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion). These are areas where there isn’t a single, correct answer. So the question becomes: how do we teach people not to simply look for concrete answers, or blindly follow what a leader says, but instead chart their own paths?”

Bo Dury

Impact Lead

“By investing in young talent upskilling and leadership development in a comprehensive way, organizations can build a stronger talent pipeline, enhance innovation, and ensure long-term organizational success.”

Ian Strik

Product Growth Manager - Young Talent Academy

“The key to business growth lies in how skilled and effective employees engage with their clients. The quality of these client interactions greatly influences a company’s success and is intertwined with commercial skills.”

Thomas Schipperen

Product Growth Manager - Commercial Academy