The world of work is changing rapidly. Digitalisation, globalisation, demographic change, the transition to a low-carbon economy and the fall-out from the COVID‑19 pandemic are having a profound impact on jobs and the skills required to perform them. The extent to which individuals, companies and whole economies can reap the benefits of these changes will depend on the readiness of adult learning systems to help people develop and maintain relevant skills over their working careers.

The COVID‑19 pandemic has disrupted labour markets in the OECD and beyond. Labour markets were already undergoing adjustments due to technological change, globalisation, population ageing and the transition to a low-carbon economy. The COVID-crisis has accelerated some of these structural changes. Providing reskilling and upskilling opportunities is more crucial than ever to enable individuals, enterprises and societies as a whole to harness the benefits of these transformations.

This introductory chapter starts by presenting the aims and objectives of the study, discussing the importance of employer-provided training, and briefly reviewing existing literature on the topic. It then introduces the research questions covered in the study, and the research methodology adopted. It provides an overview of participation rates in employer-provided training across countries and more specifically in the countries covered in the study, and discusses preliminary evidence on the impact of the COVID‑19 crisis on the amount of training offered by companies. Finally, it describes the topics covered in the subsequent chapters.

Understanding what learning opportunities enterprises provide is crucial to enable policy makers and social partners to design, implement and co‑ordinate effective training policies. For example, understanding if individuals in enterprises are developing the skills needed for the future of work can provide valuable information to better tailor support measures. This chapter presents existing and new evidence on what learning opportunities enterprises provide. It starts by investigating what training enterprises offer across three main dimensions: i) the content of training; ii) the degree of formalisation; iii) the mode of delivery. When discussing the mode of delivery, the chapter explores the impact of the COVID‑19 pandemic on the adoption of online training. Then it examines what informal learning opportunities enterprises offer and what drives their adoption.

Understanding the reasons why firms provide training rather than adopting alternative strategies, and more critically, the factors limiting training provision, is of paramount importance to design appropriate incentives to foster learning in enterprises. It is also crucial to study which groups of employees receive more training than others, and why this is the case, as there might be a role for public policy in reducing these differences. This chapter presents existing and new evidence on the main reasons and benefits of training provision by enterprises, on the obstacles to training provision, on the groups of employees that are trained more than others, and on the strategies other than training that firms adopt to address skill needs.

Enterprises invest in training because they believe that skilling their workforce helps them adapt to technological change, stay competitive, integrate new recruits and ensure health and safety of staff. To maximise these results, enterprises need to make the right decisions about training. This chapter presents existing and new evidence on how enterprises make decisions about training. It highlights where enterprises fall short of effective practices identified in the academic literature, thereby pointing to a need to build the capacity of enterprises and employees to make better training decisions.

This final chapter aims to assist governments and social partners in the design and implementation of better policies in support of training in enterprises. Firstly, the chapter analyses the rationale for policy intervention, making a distinction between the rationale to support small and medium enterprises and large firms. Secondly, it provides an overview of the available instruments that policy makers can consider to support enterprises, as well as their advantages and disadvantages. Thirdly, it provides seven key questions that governments and social partners may want to consider when designing and implementing policies.